When Kubo and the Two Strings hit theaters back in 2016, it felt different. It wasn't just another flashy animated flick. It was a stop-motion masterpiece from Laika, the folks who gave us Coraline and ParaNorman. But what really grounded that sweeping, mystical journey through ancient Japan was the voices. Honestly, the cast of Kubo is one of the weirdest, most inspired groups of actors ever assembled for a "kids' movie." You’ve got Oscar winners rubbing shoulders with sitcom legends and literal legends of the stage.
It’s easy to get lost in the visual splendor. The massive skeleton puppet. The tiny origami samurai. But if you close your eyes, the performances are what carry the emotional weight of a boy grieving his father while trying to outrun his grandfather—who, by the way, wants to steal his remaining eye. Heavy stuff.
Art Parkinson as the Heart of the Story
Kubo himself is voiced by Art Parkinson. Most people recognize him immediately once you mention Game of Thrones. He played Rickon Stark, the youngest Stark sibling who... well, let's just say he didn't run in a serpentine pattern. In Kubo, he’s doing something much more complex. He’s the anchor.
Kubo is a kid forced to grow up way too fast. He’s a street performer, a caretaker for his ailing mother, and eventually, a warrior. Parkinson brings this specific kind of raspy, earnest energy to the role. It doesn't sound like a "voice actor" trying to sound like a kid; it sounds like a boy who has spent too much time in the wind and salt air. When he shouts for his mother or argues with a talking monkey, there’s a genuine vulnerability there. Laika is famous for recording actors together when possible to get that natural friction, and you can really hear it in Parkinson’s delivery.
Charlize Theron and the Sharp Edge of Monkey
Then there’s Monkey. Charlize Theron doesn't do a ton of voice work, which is a shame because she’s incredible here. Monkey is stern. She’s protective. She’s basically the "no-nonsense" parent we all had or wished we didn't have. Theron plays her with this dry, almost brittle authority that softens as the movie goes on.
Interestingly, Monkey isn't just a sidekick. Without spoiling the decade-old plot for the three people who haven't seen it, Monkey’s identity is tied deeply to Kubo’s past. Theron has to balance being a literal animal—with all the growling and physical comedy that entails—and being the emotional core of the film’s second act. It’s a performance defined by restraint. She doesn't overact. She lets the silence do the work.
Matthew McConaughey: The Surprise Element
Matthew McConaughey as Beetle was a choice that raised some eyebrows initially. At the time, we were in the middle of the "McConaissance." He was winning Oscars and doing those weird Lincoln commercials. Suddenly, he's a giant, amnesiac samurai bug?
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It works perfectly.
Beetle provides the levity. He’s goofy, a bit dim-witted, but intensely loyal. McConaughey uses that trademark Southern drawl to create a character that feels like a forgotten hero trying to remember how to be brave. The chemistry between his laid-back optimism and Theron’s sharp cynicism is the engine that drives the movie’s middle section. It’s the classic "odd couple" trope, but executed with so much sincerity that it never feels like a cliché.
The Villains: Ralph Fiennes and Rooney Mara
Every great hero needs a terrifying villain. Or three.
Ralph Fiennes voices the Moon King, Kubo’s grandfather. Fiennes is the king of playing sophisticated evil—think Voldemort, but with more elegance and a much better nose. The Moon King isn't "evil" in the mustache-twirling sense. He genuinely believes he is doing Kubo a favor by taking his sight and bringing him to the heavens. That kind of delusional righteousness is way scarier than a simple monster.
And then you have the Sisters. Rooney Mara voices both of them.
If you want to talk about nightmare fuel, the Sisters are it. They wear these porcelain masks and float through the air with lethal grace. Mara uses a flat, haunting monotone that is genuinely unsettling. By voicing both characters, she creates this eerie, unified presence. They aren't two people; they are a single force of nature coming for Kubo. It’s one of the most underrated vocal performances in modern animation.
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Why the Casting Faced Backlash
We have to talk about the elephant in the room. Despite being a beautiful film set in feudal Japan and drawing heavily from Japanese folklore, the main cast of Kubo is overwhelmingly white.
At the time of release, there was significant criticism regarding "whitewashing." While the film employed Japanese cultural consultants and featured actors like George Takei and Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa in supporting roles, the three leads—Kubo, Monkey, and Beetle—were not of Asian descent.
Director Travis Knight addressed this, noting that the film was a "love letter" to Japanese culture and that they sought the best actors for the specific "archetypes" they were building. However, the conversation around representation has shifted significantly since 2016. If the movie were made today, it’s highly likely the casting office would have looked very different. It’s a complicated legacy for a film that otherwise treats its source material with immense respect, from the costume design to the woodblock-print aesthetic.
The Supporting Players You Might Have Missed
- George Takei: He plays Hosato. It’s a smaller role, but Takei’s iconic baritone is unmistakable.
- Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa: He voices Hashi. Tagawa is a legend (shout out to the original Mortal Kombat fans), and he brings a grounded, village-elder vibe to the early scenes.
- Brenda Vaccaro: She plays Kameyo, the spunky older woman in the village. Her energy provides a nice contrast to the heavy, mystical themes of the opening.
The Technical Wizardry Behind the Voices
Voice acting for stop-motion is a different beast than for CG. In CG, you can often tweak the animation to fit a later line reading. In stop-motion, once those frames are shot, they are shot.
The actors recorded their lines first. Then, the animators at Laika spent months—sometimes years—moving puppets millimeter by millimeter to match the cadence of the speech. When you see Kubo’s mouth move, you’re seeing one of thousands of 3D-printed face plates. Each plate corresponds to a specific phoneme or emotion captured during the recording sessions.
The cast of Kubo had to provide enough "juice" in their performances to sustain the animators through that grueling process. If the voice performance is flat, the puppet feels like plastic. If the voice is alive, the puppet breathes.
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How to Appreciate the Cast Today
If you're revisiting the film or watching it for the first time, pay attention to the breath. Listen to the way Art Parkinson gasps when he's running. Listen to the way McConaughey's voice cracks when he realizes who he actually is. That stuff isn't accidental.
Kubo and the Two Strings is a story about the power of storytelling. The characters literally use stories and memories as weapons and armor. It’s meta, sure, but it’s also deeply human. The cast understood that. They didn't treat it like a "cartoon." They treated it like a myth.
Next Steps for the Kubo Superfan:
To truly appreciate the work of the cast of Kubo, your next step should be watching the "Behind the Scenes" features specifically focusing on the face-replacement technology. Seeing the physical puppets next to the actors who voiced them provides a startling look at how much of the actors' real-life expressions were "translated" into the 3D-printed faces.
Alternatively, if you're interested in the cultural roots, look into the works of filmmaker Isao Takahata (specifically The Tale of the Princess Kaguya), which served as a massive tonal inspiration for the Laika team. Understanding the folklore makes the vocal choices of the villains—specifically the Moon King—much more impactful.
Lastly, compare the vocal performances in Kubo to Laika’s later work like Missing Link. You’ll notice a distinct shift in how they use celebrity voices versus character-first performers, showing the studio's evolution in balancing star power with narrative needs.