Ryan Drummond
Born
Ryan Shawn Drummond

(1973-01-10) January 10, 1973 (age 51)[1]
Lima, Ohio, U.S.[1]
Other namesShawn Silver
EducationEastern Michigan University (BA)
Occupations
  • Actor
  • voice actor
  • comedian
  • singer
  • clown
  • mime artist
  • theatrical performer
Years active1993–present
Spouse
Lisa Drummond
​
​
(m. 2002; div. 2019)​
Children2
Musical career
Genres
  • Pop
  • musical theatre
  • jazz
  • opera
InstrumentsVocals
Member ofThe A.Y.U. Quartet
Comedy career
Medium
  • Film
  • television
  • theatre
Genres
Websitewww.ryandrummond.com (archive)

Ryan Shawn Drummond (born January 10, 1973)[1][2][3] is an American actor, comedian, singer, clown, mime artist and theatrical performer, who is best known for his role as the original English voice of Sonic the Hedgehog in the Sonic the Hedgehog video game franchise from 1998 to 2004.[2][3][4]

Early life

Ryan Shawn Drummond was born in Lima, Ohio, on January 10, 1973.[1] He attended Clague Middle School in Ann Arbor, Michigan, were he participated in various children's theatre, beginning in 1980 at seven years old.[3][5] Both of his parents also worked in theatre, his mother and father was both actors and theatre directors of the children theatre plays that Ryan participated in while in school.[3]

In 1993, he got his first paid acting job at a dinner theater while still attending college.[2] He graduated from the Eastern Michigan University in 1995, with a degree in theater.[3] Upon graduating, he moved to San Diego, California in 1996 to pursue his acting career.[2]

Career

In 1997, Drummond got his first television acting role as DJ Johnny Jam in an episode of the television drama series Baywatch. He would later star in several other television shows, such as Two Guys, a Girl and a Pizza Place, The Chronicle, The Invisible Man, Point Pleasant and Trauma. He also made a guest appearance in an episode on The Rosie O'Donnell Show in December 1998, during the Toys For Tots segment.[3] In film, he made his feature film debut in the 2000 teen cheerleading comedy film, Bring It On, as Theatre Boy.

As a voice actor, he has provided many character voices in various video games titles. In 1998, he became the voice of Sonic the Hedgehog in the video games series for SEGA, he continued to voice the character for six more years until 2004, the video games includes Sonic Adventure, Sonic Adventure 2, Sonic Heroes, Sonic Shuffle, Sonic Battle and Sonic Advance 3.[2][3][6][7][8] He also voiced Knuckles the Echidna in Sonic Shuffle, Metal Sonic in Sonic Heroes and briefly voiced Shadow the Hedgehog for a few lines in Sonic Adventure 2.[9][10][11]

Additionally, he also voiced Elliot Ballade in Blue Stinger, Insider in AirBlade, Bill Bardi in The Godfather II, J. Edgar Hoover and various other characters in Call of Cthulhu: Dark Corners of the Earth, Kevin Kertsman in Illbleed and has recently voiced the Doctor character in Mafia: Definitive Edition, where he also did the motion-capture.

Drummond initially wanted to play Sonic in the anime adaptation Sonic X, and even offered to move to New York so he could play the role, 4Kids instead hired Jason Griffith who later became his successor.[12][2]

In an interview, Drummond stated he was offered the chance by Sega to re-audition as Sonic during the development of Sonic Generations, but he rejected the role because Sega refused to give him a union contract.[13]

He also did voice work in commercials, such as The Padres, McDonald's, Wheel Of Fortune, Sega Dreamcast, Oceans Eleven, Checkmate Inc., Clear Factor Skincare, Hoist Fitness Systems, and Diedrich Coffee.[14] Additionally, he has done voices for theme parks including SeaWorld Orlando as Shamu for a few years and has also provided various voices in Legoland California.[4]

Outside of acting, Drummond has also worked in comedy, such as a mime artist and a clown.[2]

Today, Drummond mainly works in theatre. He starred in a musical comedy theatre show in San Diego titled Forever Plaid.[15] He would later star in many other musical theatre productions, such as Godspell, Into the Woods, City of Angels, Zhivago, The Producers, Hairspray, The Wedding Singer, Anything Goes, Singin' in the Rain, Mary Poppins, Sunday in the Park with George and most recently, Groundhog Day.

Additionally since 2017, he has been the main performer of the theatrical play, Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus.[3][16]

In 2020, Drummond would once again provide the voice of Sonic in the radio fan web-series Sonic and Tails R.[17]

Music career

Ryan was a member and the bass vocalist in the music group, The A.Y.U. Quartet for five years.[2] Together, the music group has released three albums.[5]

Personal life

Upon moving to San Diego, California, Drummond met his wife Lisa.[2] The couple were married on October 8, 2002.[2] Together they have two sons.[2] As of 2019, the couple have since divorced.[2] He currently resides in San Francisco, California.[18]

Drummond would update his fans about his personal life from time to time on his online blog.[19]

Filmography

Film

Year Title Role Notes
2000 Bring It On Theatre Boy [20]
2001 Poor Man Mime Short film[20]
2008 Based on a True Story Man [20]

Television

Year Title Role Notes
1997 Baywatch DJ Johnny Jam Episode: "Baywatch at Sea World"[21]
1998 Two Guys, a Girl and a Pizza Place Isaac Glickstein Episode: "Two Guys, a Girl and an Elective"[21]
The Rosie O'Donnell Show Himself/Sonic the Hedgehog 1 episode[3][21]
2001 The Chronicle Andy Episode: "What Gobbles Beneath"[21]
The Invisible Man Mime, Man Episodes: "Money for Nothing: Part 2", "Immaterial Girl"[21]
2004 Veronica Mars Associate Episode: "You Think You Know Somebody"[21]
2005 Point Pleasant Booth Vendor Episode: "Hell Hath No Fury Like a Woman Choked"[21]
2009 Trauma Fair Patron Episode: "All's Fair"
2011 Dual Suspects Robert Evans Episode: "Fast Food Fatality"

Video games

Year Title Role Notes
1998 Sonic Adventure Sonic the Hedgehog [22]
1999 Nancy Drew: Stay Tuned for Danger Rick Arlen [22]
Blue Stinger Eliot Ballade [22]
Twisted Metal 4 Pizza Boy
2000 The Three Decoders: Riddle of the Ring Sheldon [2]
The Three Decoders 2: Key to the Carousel [2]
Evil Dead: Hail to the King Merchant [22]
Danger Girl Additional voices
The Mummy Jonathan Carnahan
Sonic Shuffle Sonic the Hedgehog, Super Sonic, Knuckles the Echidna
2001 Undying Various
Illbleed Kevin Kertsman [23][24]
Zax: The Alien Hunter Zax
Sonic Adventure 2 Sonic the Hedgehog, Shadow the Hedgehog (few lines)
2002 AirBlade Insider [22]
NASCAR Racing 2002 Season Spotter [22]
Sonic Adventure 2: Battle Sonic the Hedgehog, Shadow the Hedgehog (few lines) Archive footage
Backyard Baseball 2003 Albert Pujols, Alex Rodriguez, Cliff Floyd, Frank Thomas, Achmed Khan, Ernie Steele, Pablo Sanchez, Tony Delvecchio [24]
Backyard Football Achmed Khan, Amir Khan, Ernie Steele, Pablo Sanchez, Tony Delvecchio [24]
2003 Chrome Additional voices
Rogue Ops
Backyard Soccer 2004 Additional voices [24][25]
Sonic Adventure DX: Director's Cut Sonic the Hedgehog Archive footage
2004 Duel Masters Additional voices
Sonic Battle Sonic the Hedgehog
Sonic Heroes Sonic the Hedgehog, Metal Sonic [10]
Gangland Black Boss, Bouncer, Croupier, Civilian, Sniper, Cop, Ninja, Additional voices
Spy Fiction Michael Kwain
Sonic Advance 3 Sonic the Hedgehog
Sega Superstars
2005 Call of Cthulhu: Dark Corners of the Earth J. Edgar Hoover, Seaman Willie Thompson, Experiment, Poorhouse Resident, Cutter Urania Seaman, Yithian, Additional voices
Cold War Carter, scientist, Civilian
2006 Scared Rings Additional voices
2008 The Godfather II: Crime Rings Bill Bardi
2009 The Godfather II Bill Bardi, Additional voices
Guitar Hero: Van Halen Additional voices
2020 Mafia: Definitive Edition Doctor Also motion-capture[26][22]

Web

Year Title Role Notes
2020–2021 Sonic and Tails R Sonic the Hedgehog 10 episodes
YouTube audio drama series

Theatre

Year Title Role Notes
1996 Festival Of Christmas: Once Upon A Time... Thorr [27]
2000–2005 Forever Plaid Smudge [15][28][29][27]
2002 Godspell [27][29]
2003 Cotton Patch Gospel Rock [27][29]
Festival of Christmas: It's Christmas And It's Live! Ronald Harmon [27]
2005 Palm Beach Ensemble [27]
2006 Zhivago Performer [27][29]
Into the Woods Baker [27][29]
2008 Silicon Valley Stuart Gellman [27]
2009 The Producers Leo Bloom [27]
The Wedding Singer Robbie Hart [27]
On the Town Ozzie [27]
2010 A Grand Night for Singing [27]
Hairspray Corny Collins [27]
She Loves Me Georg Nowack [27]
2011 Curtains Lieutenant Frank Cioffi [27]
The Fantasticks El Gallo [27]
2012 Anything Goes Moonface Martin [27]
Assassins Samuel Byck [27]
Pal Joey Ludlow Lowell [27]
2013 Singin' in the Rain Cosmo Brown [27]
Carnival Paul Berthalet [27]
1776 Richard Henry Lee [27]
2013–2014 Edward Gant's Amazing Feats of Loneliness! Dearlove [27]
2014 Painting the Clouds With Sunshine Russell James [27]
Du Barry Was a Lady Jones, Le Docteur, Paingrille [27]
Life Could Be a Dream Denny [27]
2015 Nick & Nora Nick Charles [27]
Company David [27]
2015, 2016 Scrooge in Love Jacob Marley [27]
2016 City of Angels Buddy Fidler, Irwin S. Irving [27]
2017 La Cage aux Folles Georges [27]
2017–2018 A Christmas Story The Old Man [27]
2017–present Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus Performer [3][16]
2018 Sunday in the Park with George Jules, Bob Greenberg [27]
2018–2019 Mary Poppins Mr. George Banks [27]
2019–2020 Groundhog Day Phil Connors San Francisco Playhouse[30][27]

Discography

References

  1. ^ a b c d "Ryan Drummond interview". www.angelfire.com. Retrieved February 15, 2020.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Orr, John (July 27, 2011). "Seen and heard: The wide-ranging career of Ryan Drummond". MercuryNews.com. Retrieved December 2, 2019.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Arbor, Ann (January 28, 2017). "Huron High and EMU alumnus starring in 'Men are from Mars' in Detroit". Milve.com. Retrieved February 15, 2020.
  4. ^ a b "RyanDrummond.com: Voice-Overs". www.ryandrummond.com. Archived from the original on October 20, 2007. Retrieved September 4, 2021.
  5. ^ a b "Ryan Drummond short bio".
  6. ^ Sonic Team (September 9, 1999). Sonic Adventure (Dreamcast). SEGA. Scene: Credits. English Character Voices
  7. ^ Sonic Team (December 5, 2003). Sonic Heroes (GameCube, PlayStation 2, Xbox, & Windows). SEGA. Scene: Credits. English Voices
  8. ^ Sonic Team & Hudson Soft (November 14, 2000). Sonic Shuffle (Dreamcast). SEGA. Scene: Credits. Voice Acting
  9. ^ "Sonic Cult // Sonic – Post 16 bit // Sonic Adventure // Interviews // Interview with Ryan Drummond //". www.sonic-cult.org. Archived from the original on September 18, 2017. Retrieved February 16, 2018.
  10. ^ a b Ryan Drummond [@RYANtheDRUMMOND] (April 6, 2015). "@jakefagan1233 I was Knuckles for a short while, and Metal Sonic for a short while. Find out where!" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  11. ^ "Drummond's confirmation". Twitter. Retrieved October 21, 2020.
  12. ^ Drummond, Ryan. "Current Events: July". Ryan Drummond (Blog). Archived from the original on July 16, 2015. Retrieved June 7, 2021.
  13. ^ Oliver, Tristan. "Report: Drummond Re-Auditioned for Sonic VA During Generations Development". TSSZ News. Archived from the original on September 12, 2012. Retrieved March 13, 2013.
  14. ^ "RyanDrummond.com: Commercials". www.ryandrummond.com. Archived from the original on September 12, 2010. Retrieved September 4, 2021.
  15. ^ a b Writer, PAM KRAGEN – Staff. "Welk's fine 'Plaid' is worth another look". sandiegouniontribune.com.
  16. ^ a b ""Men Are from Mars, Women Are from Venus" actor says show remains relevant 28 years later". February 2020.
  17. ^ Drummond, Ryan (April 23, 2020). "Something fun this way comes..." X (formerly Twitter). Retrieved November 8, 2023.
  18. ^ Drummond, Ryan. "This update is for my mom and everyone else". Current Events. Archived from the original on July 26, 2015. Retrieved July 8, 2017.
  19. ^ Drummond, Ryan. "RyanDrummond.com: Current Events". www.ryandrummond.com. Blogspot. Archived from the original on July 26, 2015. Retrieved July 8, 2017.
  20. ^ a b c "RyanDrummond.com: Film". www.ryandrummond.com. Archived from the original on October 20, 2007. Retrieved September 4, 2021.
  21. ^ a b c d e f g "RyanDrummond.com: Television". www.ryandrummond.com. Archived from the original on October 20, 2007. Retrieved September 4, 2021.
  22. ^ a b c d e f g "Ryan Drummond". Behind The Voice Actors.
  23. ^ "Illbleed (2001) Dreamcast credits".
  24. ^ a b c d "Ryan Drummond Credits".
  25. ^ "Ryan Drummond Video Game Credits and Biography".
  26. ^ "Mafia Definitive Edition Game Credits".
  27. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac ad ae af ag ah ai aj "Ryan Drummond theatre profile".
  28. ^ "'Forever Plaid' not bad, but by no means great". April 17, 2003.
  29. ^ a b c d e "RyanDrummond.com: Theatre". www.ryandrummond.com. Archived from the original on September 12, 2010. Retrieved September 4, 2021.
  30. ^ "Groundhog Day the Musical – San Francisco Playhouse Official Site". San Francisco Playhouse. Retrieved October 18, 2019.

External links

Authority control databases
Categories