Voice Over

Douglas did.

Douglas was born in Winnipeg and became a Shakespearean actor who worked regularly at Stratford Festival in Ontario. Occasionally, Douglas would leverage his talents and make extra money doing narration for documentaries … including for a film called Universe, a 30 minute animated film about exploring the heavens that was nominated for an Academy Award and was a hit with all the people at NASA.

Well, one day Douglas got a call. A film director was finishing his latest feature and had become so enthralled with Douglas’ narration on Universe after repeated viewings that he wondered if Douglas could do the narration for his film. So, Douglas flew to London, England. However, by the time he got there, the director had changed his mind and wanted to use Douglas for another key voice role instead. So over just 2 days Douglas recorded his precise lines … in a room by himself, without seeing the full script or any visuals from the almost finished movie. And then he flew home, back to his stage acting.

Today, over 50 years later, Douglas Rain is still considered one of Canada’s finest Shakespearean actors ever … but his most famous role is the one he recorded over just two days in London … a role that’s become one of the most iconic characters in movie history … The HAL9000 computer from 2001: A Space Odyssey.

The Hal 9000 voice is a great idea because doing something right just once can make an impact for a lifetime.