Around The Horn’s Reali co-stars with Dwight Howard on Kick Buttowski
Around The Horn host and Pardon The Interruption co-star Tony Reali has become the latest ESPN personality to cameo as a cartoon character.
Reali lends his voice to the villain “The Dark One” for Disney XD’s
Reali follows in in the “voice”steps of his PTI colleagues Tony Kornheiser and Michael Wilbon, ESPN college basketball analyst Dick Vitale, and SportsCenter anchor Jay Harris as Buttowski vocal talents. (College football commentator Brent Musburger voiced a character in Disney Pixar’s Cars 2 last year.)
In the video above, Reali’s “The Dark One” threatens “Rock Callahan” — voiced by NBA superstar Dwight Howard — in a Kick Buttowski “action movie.” (See a bonus clip of Howard’s character in action after the jump).
Reali talks about the experience in the interview below.
What’s the plot, in a nutshell?
The episode is called Rocked. Rock Callahan, who’s voiced by Dwight Howard, portrays Kick Buttowski in an action movie where he must defeat perhaps his most evil villain yet: The Dark One. I play The Dark One. I have a laser, a laugh and demands that must be met!
Did you perfect your maniacal laughs you alluded to in your Front &Center podcast?
I’ve waited my whole life for somebody to ask me to laugh like a villain, so yeah. I gave two takes: “Deranged with a hacking cough” and “Whimsical with a piggly snort.” Not sure which one they chose, but I think we can all agree there’s not enough piggly snort in the villain game. Dr. Evil’s laugh? Funny. Dr. Evil’s laugh with a snort? Milk out the nose. Muhahahonkhonk.
When will the PTI/ATH family, after making these cartoon cameos, get its own spinoff?
I don’t think it will take much to get those wheels in motion. Good Cop/Bad Cop [a PTI segment] is begging for a spinoff. Call it ‘The Fuzz and The Combover.’ [ATH staple] Mute Button, too: Wipeout meets Survivor in Wave of Mute-alation.
How does your character interact with Howard’s character?
I’d like to think there’s a mutual respect and love for suburban daredevilry but the bottom line is, I have a laser, I’m not afraid to use it and I won’t stop until I take over Mellowbrook. Rock can’t have that, so boom goes the Buttowski.
Are you good at impressions? Can you impersonate any of your ESPN brethren?
No. My Kornheiser is too Larry David-y and my Wilbon is more of a physical impression — Wilbon dancing to Earth, Wind & Fire in 1982. For The Dark One I had to go to a dark place; I thought of all the corrections I have to make when the guys try to talk soccer. Muhahahackcough.
What are your next projects outside of ATH/PTI?
I love storytelling, so I think putting together a 30 for 30 documentary would be a gas. And Pop Reali wants me to host Jeopardy.
