Though the narrator in Sweet Tooth is never seen, it turns out the pivotal part is voiced by a familiar Hollywood legend. The positively-reviewed Netflix show, based on Vertigo comic books by Jeff Lemire, is like Bambi-meets-the-apocalypse. In this world, a mysterious virus has wiped out the majority of the human population, and human-animal hybrids are now being born. Despite the chaos of this bizarre new normal, one of those hybrids, a deer-boy named Gus (Christian Convery), teams up with a drifter named Jepperd (Nonso Anozie) to set out to find his long lost birth mother.
The Netflix show is littered with mysteries. The H5G9 virus, which has crumbled the world’s population, has unknown origins, leading many to believe it was caused by the human-animal hybrids. There are also mysterious purple flowers that spring up around the places where people are infected with the virus. Could these flowers be the key to the cure? Or are they secretly deadly? While audiences need to stay tuned for those answers, one Sweet Tooth mystery isn’t that mysterious after all.
The unseen narrator, a gruff but friendly voice that helps viewers navigate the series, is played by none other than James Brolin. A Hollywood legend, Brolin is the father of Thanos himself, Josh Brolin, and the husband of Barbra Streisand. The actor's credits speak for themselves. Brolin has starred in a number of notable films and shows, which include The Amityville Horror, Traffic, and Life in Pieces. Recently, the 80-year-old reflected on Sweet Tooth, which was produced by the husband-and-wife team of Robert Downey Jr. and Susan Downey. In an interview (via Daily News), the actor said, “You know what’s so wonderful right now is that the Downeys were able to do this in the middle of COVID so well.” Brolin was even able to record his role from the comfort of his home.
The narrator plays a major role in the series. Serving as the bookends for the episodes, Brolin’s narration is the connective tissue that links together the very different stories of Gus, a hybrid looking for his mom; Aditya Singh (Adeel Akhtar), a doctor looking for a cure; and Aimee (Dania Ramirez), a survivor looking to save hybrids. But the narrator is more than just a vehicle for exposition. Brolin's role is one of a comforting guide through the apocalypse, helping to give Sweet Tooth its notably sweeter tone than its much darker source material.
It’s unknown if Brolin’s narrator will make an appearance in the series. After all, it would probably involve getting Brolin out of his home. But from the Genie in Aladdin being the peddler from the opening scene to the Narrator and Tyler Durden being the same person in Fight Club, giving a narrator a twisty role in a story is an age-old trope. With Brolin being such a recognizable Hollywood staple, it’d make sense to incorporate the actor into future seasons of Sweet Tooth. Still, like Brolin’s narrator, news of an appearance remains to be seen.