Animation, Interview, StreamingLeave a comment

‘Swapped’ Star Justina Machado on Empathy and Magic

May 10, 2026 Michael Lee

In the new animated film Swapped, Justina Machado lends her voice to Calli, a fiercely protective mother who would rather keep her son safely tucked away than let him explore a dangerous world. In our conversation, Machado reflects on her own immigrant upbringing of “lay low, get in no trouble,” how that connects to Calli’s “hide today, alive tomorrow” philosophy, and how fear-filled love shapes the character’s journey toward empathy, unity, and letting go.

Animation, Interview, Movies

Natasha Lyonne, Danielle Brooks, Awkwafina, and the Fun Chaotic Folks of ‘The Bad Guys 2’

August 1, 2025August 2, 2025 Michael Lee

The Bad Guys 2 is bigger, funnier, and has totally unhinged heists and action sequences. We got to talk to the cast and crew of the DreamWorks sequel: Mr. Wolf (Sam Rockwell), Kitty Kat (Danielle Brooks), Mr. Shark (Craig Robinson), Mr. Piranha (Anthony Ramos), Pigtail Petrova (Maria Bakalova), Ms. Tarantula (Awkwafina) and the director, Pierre Perifel. Our interviews below:

Animation, Interview, Star Wars1 Comment

Michelle Ang and ‘The Bad Batch’ Executive Producers Discuss Conclusion of the Series

February 16, 2024February 16, 2024 Lauren Lola

Star Wars: The Bad Batch is about to return for its third and final season. In a time of so much uncertainty for the galaxy, things are already posing to be even more so with Omega taken captive to Mount Tantiss (where former Clone Force 99 member, Crosshair, is also held). The remaining members of the Bad Batch now must do whatever they can to get her back, and sadly, following the previous season’s finale, they’ll have to do that — and other missions going forward — without Tech.

Anime, Conventions, Manga

Anime Expo 2023 Fever is Upon Us

June 28, 2023June 29, 2023 Josephine Chang

LineCon, I mean, Anime Expo, is now upon us this weekend at the Los Angeles Convention Center and here’s a snippet of the things we are most excited about! From the countless activities, events, panels, and concerts that you can attend and all the endless artists & vendors you can support, there’s something for all the anime lovers guaranteed to swarm the halls:

Animation, Interview, Television

Jayden Ham, Jaba Keh, and Viva Lee on Bringing K-Culture in Nickelodeon’s ‘Bossy Bear’

March 10, 2023March 9, 2023 Laura Sirikul

Based on the popular children’s books by David Horvath, Bossy Bear is now a television series on Nickelodeon. It is produced by Horvath and Sun-Min Kim, the creative team behind the popular plush toys UglyDolls, and gives a deeper backstory for extrovert Bossy Bear (Jayden Ham) and his best friend and introvert Turtle (Jaba Keh) as they go through some fun adventures, including some Korean American-inspired situations like show-and-tell Korean food and making kimchi.

Animation, Interview, Television

Sam Richardson and Glenn Howerton on ‘Velma’ and Character Origin Stories

January 19, 2023 Sophia Soto

Sam Richardson and Glenn Howerton voice the characters of Norville (aka Shaggy) and Fred on Velma. New episodes of the adult animated comedy series premiere Thursdays on HBO Max!

Animation, Television

Watch the ‘Bugs Bunny Builders’ Ring in the Lunar New Year

January 17, 2023January 17, 2023 Keina C

This weekend, we welcome the Year of the Rabbit as half the globe celebrates Lunar New Year. Fittingly, Bugs Bunny and friends are ready for the spotlight with a stacked slate featuring a Lunar New Year celebration short on Cartoonito, new episodes of Bugs Bunny Builders and HBO Max’s Looney Tunes Cartoons, plus the launch of Tiny Toons Looniversity later this year.

Animation, Interview, Star Wars

‘The Bad Batch’ Stars and Executive Producers Discuss Making the Second Season

January 3, 2023January 2, 2023 Lauren Lola

One day remains until the return of Star Wars: The Bad Batch. For its second season, audiences will get to continue riding along with this troop of genetically altered clones as they navigate the ever-changing galaxy following Order 66, and where they fit into all of this.

Animation, Interview, Television

Bill Fagerbakke, Jill Talley, and Dana Snyder Talk the SpongeBob Universe

December 22, 2022January 2, 2023 Sophia Soto

In 2023, Nickelodeon will take viewers on a multidimensional adventure throughout Bikini Bottom with the first-ever SpongeBob Universe crossover special, SpongeBob SquarePants Presents The Tidal Zone. The one-hour special encompasses SpongeBob SquarePants, The Patrick Star Show, and Kamp Koral: SpongeBob’s Under Years. At New York Comic Con, I had the opportunity to speak with Bill Fagerbakke, Jill Talley, and Dana Snyder about the beloved show and spin-offs.

DC Comics, Gone Too Soon2 Comments

Kevin Conroy: Batman Forever

November 11, 2022November 21, 2022 Keith Chow

I walked out of a screening of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever this morning, overcome with emotion after mourning Chadwick Boseman for the previous three hours. As soon as my phone turned on, it lit up with notification after notification alerting me to the news that we had lost another superhero. Kevin Conroy, most fans’ favorite Batman, had passed at the age of 66.

Animation, Interview

Rodger Bumpass and Carolyn Lawrence Talk ‘Kamp Koral: SpongeBob’s Under Years’

October 4, 2022October 5, 2022 Sophia Soto

Rodger Bumpass and Carolyn Lawrence voice the beloved characters of Squidward and Sandy in Kamp Koral: SpongeBob’s Under Years, which is the first original spinoff of Nickelodeon’s SpongeBob SquarePants. The series was recently picked up for a second season. New episodes are now streaming on Paramount+.

Animation, Interview, Television

Eric Bauza and Chandni Parekh Lend Their Voices to ‘Bugs Bunny Builders’

July 19, 2022July 19, 2022 Keith Chow

Next week, Warner Bros. Animation is bringing their iconic Looney Tunes characters to a preschool audience with Cartoonito’s Bugs Bunny Builders. We were fortunate enough to speak with the talented voices behind the iconic Bunnys — Bugs and Lola — as they discuss their new show.

Animation, Interview

Amber Nash Talks ‘Archer’ Season 12

October 4, 2021October 4, 2021 Patrick Strange

Yo! Yo! Yo! It’s Kuya P back again with another interview for my friends here at the NOC! I recently sat down for a conversation with Actor, Amber Nash AKA Pam Poovey to discuss Season 12 of her series on FX/FXX, Archer! Check out our conversation and then head over to FX/FXX or FX on Hulu to check out Archer: Season 12 streaming now!

Animation, Anime, Interview

Jacob Hopkins talks ‘To Your Eternity’

September 29, 2021September 29, 2021 Patrick Strange

Yo! Yo! Yo! It’s Kuya P back again with another interview for my friends here at the NOC! I recently sat down for a conversation with Actor, Jacob Hopkins to discuss his latest project on CrunchyRoll & HBO Max, To Your Eternity! Check out our conversation and then head over to CrunchyRoll or HBO Max to check out To Your Eternity streaming now!

Animation, Interview, Streaming

Finding ‘Courage’ Again: An Interview with Marty Grabstein

September 6, 2021September 6, 2021 Mike Manalo

If you’re anything like me, you grew up watching Cartoon Network cartoons in the late ’90s and early ’00s. There were a ton to enjoy, from Powerpuff Girls to Dexter’s Lab, and even classics like Samurai Jack. However one of the best and most underrated was a little cartoon called Courage the Cowardly Dog.

Star Wars, Streaming

Why Tiya Sircar Should Be Sabine Wren in ‘Ahsoka’

August 14, 2021November 4, 2021 Keith Chow

This week, news broke that Lucasfilm was ramping up production on Ahsoka and looking for an actress to play a live action version of the popular Rebels character, Sabine Wren. Naturally, I was taken aback by the phrase “looking for” because an actress already plays Sabine and her name is Tiya Sircar.

Animation, Interview, Star Trek

Dawnn Lewis, aka Captain Carol Freeman, on the Return of ‘Star Trek: Lower Decks’

August 11, 2021August 11, 2021 Swara Salih

Dawnn Lewis does it all. Acting, voice acting, musicals, and more. And she can add Starfleet Captain to the list with her role as Captain Carol Freeman of the USS Cerritos. She’s a no nonsense captain who unfortunately has a lot of nonsense to deal with from her crew, including her own daughter Beckett, who may cause the most trouble of the bunch. Ahead of the Season 2 Premiere this Thursday, August 12, we at The Nerds of Color were able to speak with Lewis on how she approaches the role of Captain Freeman, her voice-acting career, what we can expect for her and Beckett’s mother-daughter dynamic, and the prospect of returning to Broadway for the musical Tina.

Animation, Anime

The VO Actors of Global Majority You Need to Know: Ryan Colt Levy

August 2, 2021August 2, 2021 Edward Hong

Over the past three years, I’ve encountered some truly remarkable voiceover actors from the PGM (People Of Global Majority) community, so remarkable that I thought it would be a worthwhile endeavor to dedicate an article about themselves, their accomplishments, and where you can find them and do so every week. When will this end? Most likely never so as I cackle at the infinite posts this may generate, I am so very happy to tell you all that my spotlight for this week is on Ryan Colt Levy! (Banner design once again done by the incredible VO artist/graphic designer Belsheber Rusape Jr.)

Animation, Anime

The VO Actors of Global Majority You Need to Know: Emi Lo

July 26, 2021July 26, 2021 Edward Hong

Over the past three years, I’ve encountered some truly remarkable voiceover actors from the PGM (People Of Global Majority) community, so remarkable that I thought it would be a worthwhile endeavor to dedicate an article about themselves, their accomplishments, and where you can find them and do so every week. For this week, my spotlight is on Emi Lo! (Banner design by the incredible VO artist/graphic designer Belsheber Rusape Jr.)

Animation, Interview, Movies

NOC Interview: ‘Space Jam: A New Legacy’ Stars Eric Bauza and Gabriel Iglesias

July 16, 2021July 16, 2021 Mike Manalo

As I write this, reports have recently come in that our pal, Gabriel Iglesias, is currently recovering from COVID, so before we get into it, we want to wish him a very rapid recovery and all of our best wishes.

Today also marks the debut of Eric Bauza and Iglesias’ new film, Space Jam: A New Legacy! And to celebrate the return of the Tune Squad, we, at The Nerds of Color, were lucky enough to speak with Bauza and Iglesias about their roles in the new movie. Before we begin, here’s a bit about them.

Animation, Movies, Streaming

Meet the Cast of Netflix’s ‘My Little Pony: A New Generation’

June 30, 2021July 2, 2021 Sophia Soto

Netflix has released the cast for My Little Pony: A New Generation and it’s AMAZING! The cast includes Vanessa Hudgens, Kimiko Glenn, James Marsden, Sofia Carson, and Liza Koshy. The news was revealed through a video with each cast member introducing themselves and their characters. They also shared the official release date: September 24.

Animation, Movies, Streaming

Netflix Has Released the Trailer and Key Art for ‘America: The Motion Picture’

June 3, 2021June 3, 2021 Sophia Soto

The official trailer and key art for Netflix’s new film, directed by Matt Thompson and written by Dave Callaham, has finally dropped! The talented voice cast includes Channing Tatum, Jason Mantzoukas, Olivia Munn, Bobby Moynihan, Judy Greer, Will Forte, Raoul Max Trujillo, Killer Mike, Simon Pegg, and Andy Samberg. America: The Motion Picture is produced by Phil Lord, Christopher Miller, Will Allegra, Channing Tatum, Peter Kiernan, Reid Carolin, Matt Thompson, Eric Sims, and Dave Callaham.