DreamWorks really took a gamble back in 2013 when they decided to release a movie about a bunch of dirty, terrified cavepeople living in a world that was literally falling apart. It worked. People loved the Croods. Most of that success comes down to the chemistry of the croods family tree cast, a group of actors who managed to make grunt-heavy dialogue sound like a genuine family dinner. Honestly, if you look at the names involved, it's a bit of a miracle they got them all in one recording booth—or at least in the same franchise.
You’ve got Oscar winners rubbing shoulders with sitcom legends. It’s a weird mix. But the family tree isn’t just about the main six characters anymore. Between the first film, the sequel A New Age, and the various spin-off shows like Family Tree on Hulu and Peacock, the roster of voices has expanded into something much bigger and more complex than most people realize.
The Core Branches: The Original Croods Family Tree Cast
At the top of the hierarchy is Grug. Nicolas Cage voices him. It’s perfect casting. Cage has this specific energy where he can sound both intensely protective and completely overwhelmed by a changing world. Grug is the patriarch, the guy who thinks "fear is good, change is bad." He’s the anchor of the family tree, even if that anchor is sometimes dragging everyone else down into a dark cave. Cage’s performance is what gives the movie its heart; he isn't just a cartoon dad, he's a guy who is genuinely terrified of losing his kids to the "tomorrow" he doesn't understand.
Then there’s Ugga, voiced by Catherine Keener. She’s the balance. While Grug is screaming about death, Ugga is the one actually keeping the group from falling into a volcano. Keener brings a grounded, slightly exhausted vibe to the role that feels incredibly relatable to any parent.
The kids are where things get chaotic. Eep is voiced by Emma Stone. Before she was winning every award in Hollywood, she was the rebellious teenager of the Pliocene era. Eep is the catalyst for the whole story because she refuses to stay in the dark. Stone’s husky voice fits the "strong cave-girl" archetype without making her feel like a caricature. Beside her is Thunk, the middle child who... well, he’s not the brightest. Clark Duke voices him with a perfect mix of innocence and pure, unadulterated confusion.
We can't forget Gran. Cloris Leachman was a legend, and her voicing Gran—Grug's mother-in-law who refuses to die much to Grug's chagrin—is highlight-reel material. She’s the oldest branch on the croods family tree cast, bringing a scrappy, cynical edge to the family dynamic. Rounding out the original family is Sandy, the feral baby. While she mostly growls and bites things, those vocalizations were handled by Randy Thom in the first film, a legendary sound designer who knows exactly how to make a human toddler sound like a predatory badger.
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The Evolution: Guy and The Bettermans
The family tree isn't just biological. Guy changed everything. Ryan Reynolds voiced Guy in both feature films, bringing that trademark fast-talking, slightly arrogant but ultimately well-meaning charm. Guy is the one who introduces "ideas" to the family. He’s the bridge between the Croods and the next step in human evolution.
When The Croods: A New Age hit screens in 2020, the tree grew some very polished, very annoying new branches: The Bettermans.
- Phil Betterman: Voiced by Peter Dinklage. He’s the "refined" version of Grug. He has a man-bun. He has a "man-cave." Dinklage plays the passive-aggressive elitist perfectly.
- Hope Betterman: Leslie Mann voices the matriarch of the Betterman clan. She’s all smiles and hidden judgments.
- Dawn Betterman: Kelly Marie Tran voices the daughter. She’s the sheltered counterpart to Eep’s wild upbringing.
This expansion shifted the focus from simple survival to a clash of cultures. It forced the croods family tree cast to react to a mirror version of themselves—people who had conquered the wild instead of just hiding from it.
The Television Shift: Who Stayed and Who Left?
Here is where it gets a little bit confusing for fans. If you’ve watched the series The Croods: Family Tree or the earlier 2D series Dawn of the Croods, you might have noticed the voices sound... different.
Big stars like Nicolas Cage, Emma Stone, and Ryan Reynolds rarely stick around for the TV spin-offs. It's just too expensive. In the Family Tree series, Kiff VandenHeuvel takes over as Grug. He does an uncanny job of mimicking Cage’s specific cadence and "gruff-but-vulnerable" tone. Ally Dixon steps in for Emma Stone as Eep, and AJ Locascio takes over for Ryan Reynolds as Guy.
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It’s a common practice in animation. The "B-Cast" or the TV cast has to do the heavy lifting of maintaining the characters across dozens of episodes. Artemis Pebdani takes over as Gran, and while she isn't Cloris Leachman, she captures that same "I’m 100 years old and I’ll fight a tiger" energy.
Why the Voice Acting Matters More Than You Think
In a film like The Croods, the physical acting is handled by animators, but the emotional pacing is entirely on the actors. Think about the scene at the end of the first movie where Grug has to throw his family to safety. If Nicolas Cage hadn't sold that moment of self-sacrifice, the movie would have just been a silly romp about colorful monsters. Instead, it became a story about the pain of letting your children grow up.
The croods family tree cast succeeded because they didn't treat it like a "kids' movie." They treated it like a family drama that just happened to have Macawnivores and Bear-Owls in it.
Breaking Down the Character Dynamics
The chemistry isn't accidental. The writers at DreamWorks, including Kirk DeMicco and Chris Sanders, wrote these roles with specific voices in mind.
- The Conflict: Grug vs. Guy. It's the classic "Dad vs. Boyfriend" trope, but heightened because the stakes are literal extinction. Reynolds and Cage playing off each other is comedy gold because one is frantic and the other is cool.
- The Mother-Daughter Bond: Ugga and Eep have a subtle relationship. Ugga remembers being Eep, but she also knows the dangers. Keener and Stone play this with a lot of warmth.
- The Comic Relief: Thunk and Gran. They are the outliers. They provide the physical comedy that balances out the heavy "end of the world" themes.
How to Follow the Franchise Moving Forward
If you are looking to dive deeper into the world of the Croods, you have to look beyond the two main movies. The world building in the Family Tree series actually explores the lore of the world much more than the films ever could. We see more of the "evolved" inventions and how the two families actually try to live together in a single giant treehouse.
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It's basically The Brady Bunch but with more giant scorpions.
To get the most out of the franchise, start with the 2013 original to see the core croods family tree cast in their prime. Then, move to A New Age to see the introduction of the Bettermans. If you have kids—or if you just really like the world—the Hulu/Peacock series Family Tree is the natural next step. It currently has several seasons and covers the day-to-day antics of the merged families.
Actionable Steps for Fans and Collectors
If you're a fan of the voice talent behind these characters, there are a few things you can do to appreciate the work more:
- Check out the Behind-the-Scenes: Both Blu-ray releases of the films have "In the Recording Booth" segments. Seeing Nicolas Cage physically act out Grug's movements while standing at a microphone is worth the price of admission alone.
- Follow the TV Cast: Actors like AJ Locascio and Kiff VandenHeuvel are incredibly active in the voice acting community. They often do interviews about what it's like "filling the shoes" of major Hollywood A-listers.
- Explore the Art Books: The Art of the Croods books show how the character designs were tweaked to match the facial expressions of the actors. You can see Emma Stone’s expressions in Eep’s face if you look closely enough at the character sheets.
The franchise remains a staple of DreamWorks' library because it hits on a universal truth: families are messy, loud, and annoying, but they’re the only thing keeping us grounded when the ground is literally opening up beneath our feet.