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'I, Robot' Actor Was 'very Upset' Movie Dropped Him From Press After He Tested Better Than Will Smith

Amy Kuperinsky

Thu, August 14, 2025 at 2:35 AM UTC

2 min read

Alan Tudyk voiced the robot Sonny in "I, Robot" and used motion capture to deliver his performance in the summer blockbuster. But he says his role in the film was largely forgotten in the publicity rollout.

Alan Tudyk was one of the major stars of the 2004 summer blockbuster "I, Robot" — but he's not so sure many people know that.

"A lot of people didn't know I did Sonny the robot on 'I, Robot' and there's a reason for that," he said on the podcast "Toon'd In with Jim Cummings."

The actor pins that reason on the marketing machinery around the 20th Century Fox movie.

Namely, a decision that he said obscured his whole role in the film.

Summer movie champ Will Smith starred in the Oscar-nominated "I, Robot" as Del Spooner, a Chicago detective in a world of worker robots.

In the movie, Spooner investigates the death of the founder of U.S. Robotics, which is supposed to have been a suicide.

His key suspect is the robot Sonny, played by Tudyk.

Alex Proyas directed the film, which was written by Akiva Goldsman and Jeff Vintar.

Tudyk voiced Sonny and performed as the robot through motion capture for the film, which grossed more than $353 million worldwide.

He told Cummings — the voice of Winnie the Pooh and Tigger, among other animated characters — that the studio's marketing of his performance in the movie hinged on the results of test screenings.

"They were doing test audiences with the movie and they score the characters in this kind of test audience and I got word back 'Alan, you're testing higher than Will Smith.'"

"And then I was gone, I was done," he said. "There was no publicity and my name was not mentioned."

"I put a lot into it," Tudyk said of the performance.

"At the time, I was very upset."

Will Smith, Alan Tudyk and Bridget Moynahan on the set of "I, Robot."

Tudyk is nominated for a 2025 Emmy for his performance as the droid K-2SO in the Disney+ "Star Wars" series "Andor."

In 2013, he won an Annie Award (an honor given for excellence in animation) for his performance as King Candy in the 2012 movie "Wreck-It Ralph."

Tudyk, who appears in the recent DC film "Superman," starred as the alien Harry Vanderspeigle in the Syfy series "Resident Alien," which just ended with its fourth season.

You can watch the actor's conversation with Jim Cummings at the 17:20 mark in the video below.

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Amy Kuperinsky may be reached at akuperinsky@njadvancemedia.Com and followed at @AmyKup on Twitter/X, @amykup.Bsky.Social on Bluesky and @kupamy on Instagram and Threads.

Alan Tudyk Says He Was Cut From 'I, Robot' Promo Over Testing With Will Smith

Originally appeared on E! Online

Alan Tudyk is providing his take on why no one knows he is legend.

The "I, Robot" actor shared that he got cut from the marketing promos for the 2004 film — in which he played lovable humanlike robot Sonny opposite Will Smith's Del Spooner — due to the results of early test screenings of the blockbuster flick.

"A lot of people did not know I did Sonny the Robot in 'I, Robot,' and there is a reason," Tudyk said during a recent appearance on the "Toon'd In with Jim Cummings" podcast. "They were doing test audiences for the movie, and they score the characters in this kind of test screening. I got word back: 'Alan, you are testing higher than Will Smith.' And then I was gone. I was done."

And the 54-year-old recalled being taken out of more than just the promos. As he noted, "There was no publicity, and my name was not mentioned."

Will Smith is addressing the infamous moment when he slapped Chris Rock at the 2022 Oscars in his new music.

PHOTOS: Will Smith's Best Roles

"I was so shocked," he continued. "I was like, 'Wait, nobody is going to know I'm in it!'"

The role was challenging for Tudyk, as it required him to perform by appearing on screen using motion capture and voice acting. And ultimately, he wished he could have earned some recognition for it.

"I put a lot into [that performance]," the "Resident Alien" alum shared. "I had to move like a robot. At the time, I was very upset."

Tudyk said his removal from the movie's publicity highlights a bigger problem for him, as well. The "Rogue One: A Star Wars Story" actor believes that voice acting doesn't get the credit it deserves on the whole.

"I was in the room. I'm at the wheel, I was with the actor back and forth," Tudyk said of the acting technique. "My voice is completely attached to the world that everyone is seeing."

E! News reached out to 20th Century Fox for comment but has not heard back.

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