A force of nature. Inspirational. Wickedly talented. That's what colleagues say about Debra Wilson. She's gone from improv comedy on the stage to sketch comedy on television to movies and one of the most sought-after voice actors in the industry. Mad TV, The Weakest Link, Saints Row, Diablo, Destiny 2, Ratchet & Clank, World of Warcraft, Hearthstone...literally too many to list. What stands out more than her credits is her passion and her love of the craft. Get ready, because a conversation with Debra is a full-contact ride. Debra Wilson: ... I've been with CESD almost two decades. Randall Ryan: Wow. Yeah. That's you and Dave Fennoy. Debra Wilson: My crush, by the way. One of my crushes. Randall Ryan: Yeah. I think there's a “get in line” on that one. Debra Wilson: Yeah. Yeah…mmm. Randall Ryan: (laughs) Debra- Debra Wilson: I'm going to put you on the spot, ‘cause you're in there too, Randall Ryan, and you know that. Randall Ryan: Go ahead, put me on the spot. What are you putting me on the spot for? Debra Wilson: I just told you. I said I'm going to put you on the spot because you're in there too. And you know that already. Randall Ryan: Oh, that I have a crush on Dave? Debra Wilson: No, you idiot. Gillian Brashear: (laughs) Oh, that was priceless. Who? Me? Little ol’ me? Little ol’ Randall? Stop it! Debra Wilson: Thank you, Gillian. Thank you Goddess, for getting it. THEME MUSIC Randall Ryan: A couple of weeks ago, I was speaking with one of the best and most well-known voice actors in the industry, and Debra Wilson's name came up. “She has to be the best in the industry. I'm not even sure who's second.” That's what this person said. I got to tell you, there is no higher praise in when your colleagues speak privately about you in those terms. Here's my story. The very first time I worked with Debra, she had a character who was supposed to speak an unintelligible language, and she was inventing this. The thing is that she hadn't even seen the script because it was under such tight NDA. So, the first time she saw it was when she came into the studio. She not only did such a great job inventing this, and in a ridiculously short period of time, she set the bar for what everybody else was going to do with this particular race of people anytime that there was a character there. And oh, by the way: she also voiced two other characters for the same game in the same session that had nothing to do with those. Years as a cast member on Mad TV, Savathun and Destiny 2, HALO, Saints Road, Diablo, Cosmonious High…she has way too many credits to even attempt a synopsis. It's better if you just hear from the fascinating person that is Debra. So, let's talk voiceover, Debra Wilson. Debra Wilson: Yes. Let's talk voiceover Randall Ryan. Let's talk voiceover, Gillian. Gillian Brashear: Let's do. Debra Wilson: You need your own island. Gillian Brashear: Okay, great. I'll take it. Debra Wilson: Yeah, Gillian's Island. Gillian Brashear: (laughs) Debra Wilson: And that's how it begins, Gillian. That's how it begins. Gillian Brashear: I'll take it. (laughs) You can come, too! You can visit my island, both of you. Debra Wilson: Yay. You have internet? Gillian Brashear: I will. It's called a pigeon. Debra Wilson: Call me when you do. Randall Ryan: I never have asked you this. Debra Wilson: Uh huh. Randall Ryan: You, at least to my consciousness came up more as doing comedy and especially doing sketch stuff. You don't do any of that anymore. Debra Wilson: It's not that I don't do it, it's just that it hasn't really come up. And it hasn't been a venue that's come up where it's like, wow, here's this offer. Wow, I want to create this type of show. Or, wow, let's go up and do some standup. Or, wow, let's host this event and bring out comedians. So there just hasn't been the opportunity to do that kind of stuff live more than anything else. And of course, you have to include, in that equation, the pandemic. Randall Ryan: So, for you, it was never a conscious, like you know, I think I'm done with this and I'm just going to go do this other thing. VO became kind of a venue for you that essentially filled your plate. Debra Wilson: Yes. And then, on-camera stuff started becoming less and less because I knew I was moving in a different direction. And I began to choose moving in a different direction and started getting tattooed, which was a subconscious as well as a very, very conscious decision creatively, which signified not being on camera as much or not being on camera at all. Randall Ryan: So, why? Whether you were actually eschewing it or not, why did you just say, "You know what, I think I'm either done with this or I'm not going to pursue it." And you moved into what, really, from an acting perspective is, almost a completely different realm. Debra Wilson: No, it's actually the same realm because people have a tendency to believe that voice acting is not acting. And...
