Jack Black's Best Performance For Peter Jackson's King Kong Wasn't In The Movie

2005 saw the release of Peter Jackson's "King Kong," an effort to bring the classic 1933 movie into the age of the modern CGI blockbuster. Jackson's version of the black-and-white Hollywood epic came with the surprising casting of Jack Black, normally associated with silly comedy roles, as the desperate filmmaker Carl Denham. It was an impressive turn from Black in a darker role (Jackson's take on "King Kong" essentially cast Denham as the villain of the piece), showcasing the actor's dramatic chops. However, Black actually went on to outdo his performance in the movie with his performance in the tie-in video game.

"Peter Jackson's King Kong: The Official Game of the Movie," released ahead of the movie, was a seriously impressive video game adaptation. Garnering much praise, the game not only received input from Jackson but also saw the full cast of the film reprise their roles. This included Black, returning for another go at bringing Carl Denham to life.

While the game followed the same overarching story as the movie, it was not a one-to-one adaptation. In reworking the plot for a new medium, the "King Kong" game refined many of the film's characters while also having more of the story be carried through their dialogue. This gave the cast fresh material to explore and Black, in particular, shone. The energy the actor brought to Denham's video game incarnation demonstrated his flair for voice performance, an arena in which he would go on to enjoy much greater success beyond "King Kong."

The video game adaptation of "King Kong" saw Jack Black's Carl Denham become a much more active force in driving the protagonists' initial journey across Skull Island. Black brought an energy to the character that was necessary to guide the game's players through these early levels while keeping the gameplay engaging and character-driven. This version of Denham veered closer to Black's typical comedic roles yet maintained the dramatic underpinnings of the movie, allowing Black to go bigger and bolder with his performance.

"King Kong" wasn't Black's first foray into voice acting; he had previously lent his voice talents to "The Simpsons," "Ice Age," and the shark Lenny in "Shark Tale." However, "King Kong" allowed Black to combine his comedic and dramatic talents and explore a new medium in the form of video games. He would later appear in "Goosebumps: Night of Scares," a video game tie-in for the 2015 "Goosebumps" movie in which Black also starred. In addition to portraying movie characters in video games, Black brought a video game character to the big screen when he voiced Bowser in 2023's "The Super Mario Bros. Movie."

Three years after the release of the "King Kong" video game, Black took on perhaps his best-known voice role, Po, in the 2008 animated movie "Kung Fu Panda." Black has continued voicing Po across movies and television ever since, most recently reprising the character for 2024's "Kung Fu Panda 4."