Here’s a quick guide to the voice cast and characters of animated movie Ferdinand. Adapted from the children’s book The Story Of Ferdinand by writer Munro Leaf, the Spain-set animation tells the tale of a ginormous but gentle-hearted bull named Ferdinand who hates bullfighting and escapes his training ranch to find a home with a kind farm family. After being recaptured, Ferdinand is forced into the bullring to face off against the world’s greatest bullfighter, the egotistical El Primero.
Ferdinand was released by 2oth Century Fox in 2017 and produced by its Blue Sky Studios arm. Although it performed decently at the worldwide box office and got good reviews, it couldn’t outperform that year’s biggest animated hit – Disney and Pixar’s Coco. That extended to the awards circuit too where Ferdinand was nominated for Best Animated Feature at both the Academy Awards and the Golden Globes but lost out to Coco both times.
Nevertheless, Ferdinand is a charming and fun movie that boasts spirited performances from a talented voice cast. Here’s a rundown of the cast along with the characters they brought to life.
John Cena – Ferdinand
Wrestler-turned-actor John Cena voices the title role in Ferdinand, a pacifist bull who prefers floristry over bullfighting. Ferdinand escapes Casa del Toro – the ranch he grew up on – but is forced to return to fight world-renowned bullfighter El Primero. Along the way, Ferdinand discovers the horrific truth about bullfighting and tries to convince his fellow bulls to escape their fate.
Lupe – Kate McKinnon
Voiced by Saturday Night Live’s Kate McKinnon, Lupe is Casa del Toro’s resident “calming goat” whose job it is to keep the bulls chilled out. Trouble is the excitable Lupe is about as calming as a tornado. Nevertheless, she becomes Ferdinand’s best pal and helps him break out of Casa del Toro a second time.
Bobby Cannavale – Valiente
Bobby Cannavale of Mr. Robot and Homecoming fame lends his voice to the role of Valiente, a bully who aspires to be the greatest fighting bull in Spain and mocks Ferdinand for his aversion to fighting.
Peyton Manning – Guapo
Guapo is a vain but nervous bull-in-training who suffers from stage fright and tends to throw up or faint when confronted in a bullfight. He’s voiced by former NFL quarterback Peyton Manning.
Anthony Anderson – Bones
Anthony Anderson (Black-ish) voices Bones, a scrawny but super-fast and competitive bull who also resides at the Casa del Toro.
David Tennant – Angus
Rounding out the main voice cast of Ferdinand is Scottish actor and former Doctor Who star David Tennant. He voices Angus – a Scottish Highland bull whose long, luscious fringe hinders his bullfighting performance.
Next: The Lion King 2019 Cast & Character Guide: Who Voices Which Animal?
