The world of animation is mainly directed towards a younger audience, which inevitably sticks with kids throughout teenagehood, and later, adulthood. There's a reason '90s kids today still reminisce about watching The Rugrats or popping in Disney's The Lion King. The older we get and the more we think back to our favorite animated films and shows, we start to wonder who the voices were behind the character. After all, some of the stars became even more famous over times while others kind of dwindled away. Nevertheless, with the fantastic work done by Pixar, DreamWorks, Disney, and beyond, we're constantly given iconic roles and pieces of art year after year.
Let's take a look back at some of the older animated works we were given, seeing who the voices were behind our favorite little characters.
Angelina Jolie As Lola In 'Shark Tale'
In 2004, Shark Tale hit screens everywhere with Will Smith voicing one of the main characters (Oscar) and Renée Zelwigger playing his behind-the-scenes love interest, Angie. In the film, however, Oscar is taken back by a fish named Lola.
She plays a minor role in the film, but fans of the movie quickly put together that Lola was voiced by Angelina due to the similar features (hello, sultry eyes and gorgeous lips!). With so many action thrillers on her resume, many fans forget that Angelina was once the voice of this seductive fish.
Brad Pitt As Metro Man In 'Megamind'
Megamind took off in 2010 as a superhero (Megamind) tries to defeat his nemesis, Metro Man. Will Ferrell voices Megamind as Metro Man is voiced by none other than Brad Pitt himself.
Considering he had a bunch of young kids of his own at this time with ex-wife Angelina Jolie, it's no wonder he stepped away from the serious content to take a brief break doing animated work instead.
Justin Timberlake As Artie In 'Shrek The Third'
From singing to dancing to acting to voice-acting, Justin Timberlake has proven himself to be a man able to do it all. In Shrek the Third, he took the time to voice Artie, the hopeful new king of Far, Far Away. Now, if you're a fan of JT, you'll recognize his voice as Artie instantly; but it's fun to remember that he was apart of the Shrek universe, standing alongside ex-girlfriend Cameron Diaz. Not to mention his voice is the perfect mix of boyish and manly.
Russell Brand As Dr. Nefario In 'Despicable Me'
Was anyone else aware that Russel Brand did the voice work for Dr. Nefario in Despicable Me?! Despicable Me was a huge success when it hit screens in 2010. With Steve Carell voicing Gru, comedian and actor Russel Brand voiced his partner-in-crime, Dr. Nefario.
Working alongside Gru for years doing evil activity, Nefario was disturbed at the fact that Gru was growing attached to the young girls. But as we all know, love wins all and Gru chose life as a dad over stealing the moon with Dr. Nefario.
James Corden As Hi-5 In 'The Emoji Movie'
Considering the fact that emojis are silly stickers we have on our phones that we use for messaging, it's wild to think about how well this animated film did in theatres. Making over $200 million in the box office, the movie had a bunch of stars voicing the emojis.
Alongside Anna Faris, T.J. Miller, and Sofia Vergara, host and Carpool Karaoke funnyman James Corden portrayed High-5 in the film. A film about an emoji who makes many expressions, he's off on a journey to try become more "normal."
Flea As Donnie In 'The Wild Thornberrys'
The Wild Thornberrys was a Nickelodeon classic that ran from 1998 to 2004. Due to its success, Nickelodeon turned it into a movie: The Wild Thornberrys Movie. Spinning on the fact that sisters Debbie and Eliza get on each other's nerves a lot (like many sisters), Eliza had to use her unique ability to talk to animals to save Debbie.
Not only did Mean Girls Lacey Chabert voice Eliza, but Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer, Flea, voiced their wild brother Donnie!
Selena Gomes As Mavis In 'Hotel Transylvania'
Hotel Transylvania is an awesome 2012 movie about Dracula and a non-vampire boy who finds out about their secret universe.
In the movie, Dracula is voiced by famed actor Adam Sandler, and Selena Gomez portrays Mavis, Dracula's daughter! As a curious teenager, she falls in love with the mortal boy and Dracula does whatever he can to keep their feelings at bay.
Taylor Swift As Aubrey In 'The Lorax'
Taking off in 2012, The Lorax was, of course, based on Dr. Seuss' The Lorax. The animated picture made over $340 million in the box office and was about a young boy (Zac Efron) who needed to find the Lorax in order to win the girl of his dreams' heart. The girl in question was Audrey, voiced by singer/songwriter, Taylor Swift!
Hayden Panettiere As Dot In 'A Bug's Life'
Hayden Panettiere hasn't done much as of late, however, she was everyone's favorite ant in Pixar's A Bug's Life. Making over $360 million in the box office, this '90s movie was an instant success. With an adorable storyline and mesmerizing colors, we never wanted A Bug's Life to end.
In the movie, we see Flik and Princess Atta go on a crazy adventure to save their tribe, but it was Atta's kid sister, Dot, who won us over with cuteness. Hayden was just a kid when she voiced Dot so it's amazing to see her transform as an artist and as a woman.
Demi Moore As Esmeralda In 'The Hunchback Of Notre Dame'
Released in 1996, Disney's The Hunchback of Notre Dame was as dark as it could get. A man who had pride in bell-ringing had a deformed hump on his back and was up against the world.
In the film, Quasimodo (Tom Hulce) had a soft spot for Esmeralda, a gypsy woman who attracted men near and far. Unlike other people in the town, Esmeralda had a heart for Quasimodo, so it's amazing to find out that the gorgeous woman was also voiced by another gorgeous actress, Demi Moore!