In the new movie Bolt, featuring a dog who doesn’t know his special powers are the result of special effects, voices were picked based on celebrity status–except for one. The hamster.

What’s so special about the hamster named “Rhino” that he didn’t need an A-list acting voice? They couldn’t find a voice better than the one they already had. His voice is performed by Mark Holton, an animator who is now meeting the press and walking the red carpet.

How did it all happen, popped culture enthusiasts? Because it could happen to you if you have the right talent at the right moment.

Normally when an animation crew is working on 3D characters and the voices haven’t been selected yet they fill in the voices themselves. Any member of the crew can add their personality as long as they realize later that their character interpretation will be eliminated in favor of stars like John Travolta or Miley Cyrus. Mark Walton got lucky. No one else, famous or otherwise, fit the bill when it came to voicing “Rhino The Hamster”. The producers and director felt he was the best choice.

Realistically this is a rare event, though maybe a precedent is being set here. …Nah, let’s face it. They weren’t going to let an animator do the voice of “Bolt The Dog”. The marketing department would have had a tantrum. They need to be able to sell star status, not some grunt working behind the scenes who’s had too many donuts and Monster Energy Drinks.

Mark Walton scored big time with a secondary character not important enough to make marketing squeal but popular enough within the movie to make audiences laugh. He snuck behind the radar and scored. We at Popped Culture News salute you Mark. Animator Grunts everywhere are jealous.

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