Critical Role gave fans a first look at the character art for upcoming Amazon original animated series “The Legend of Vox Machina,” created by Emmy-winning artist, animator and designer Phil Bourassa.
CR is producing “The Legend of Vox Machina,” based on the popular role-playing collective’s first campaign. In 2019 Amazon Prime Video ordered a total of 24 episodesacross two seasons afterthe project broke Kickstarter records. The first season is slated to debut “soon” on Amazon Prime Video.
Bourassa’s credits include character designs for DC/Warner Bros. Animation’s “Young Justice,” “Batman: Bad Blood,” “Batman: Hush” and “Justice League” series.
Bourassa, in a video Critical Role released Wednesday about his joining the series (watch below), said he worked closely with the CR team to create the anime-inflected character looks.
“Normally, when I’m creating a design it comes from the written word, or a comic book, or even just the writer’s script,” Bourassa said. “These characters come from the imagination and the heart and the soul of the voice actors, the cast members, who are the creators and founders… so they were very involved.”
Series director Sung Jin Ahn said in the video, “My reaction to Phil Bourassa was like, ‘No fucking way!'” The behind-the-scenes video also includes a few fleeting snippets of the final animation for “The Legend of Vox Machina” Season 1.
“The Legend of Vox Machina” follows a group of “second-rate adventurers” on a quest to save the realm from terrifying monsters and dark magical forces, according to Critical Role. In the first season, the motley crew will face undead giants, overthrow a sinister necromancer — and confront a powerful curse that has taken root inside their own group.
“The Legend of Vox Machina” stars the Critical Role cast of Laura Bailey, Taliesin Jaffe, Ashley Johnson, Liam O’Brien, Matthew Mercer, Marisha Ray, Sam Riegel and Travis Willingham, who are reprising their roles. They also serve as executive producers alongside Brandon Auman (“Star Wars: Resistance”) and Titmouse’s Chris Prynoski (“metalocalypse”). Sung Jin Ahn (“Niko and the Sword of Light”) is supervising director, and animation studio Titmouse (“Big Mouth,” “Star Trek: Lower Decks”) is the animation partner.
No premiere date has been set for “The Legend of Vox Machina” Season 1. Pre-pandemic, it had been targeted for late 2020 release on Prime Video. Amazon Studios also has a first-look deal with Critical Role to develop new series to premiere exclusively on Prime Video.
Critical Role also Wednesday released free digital wallpapers of the “Vox Machina” characters’ final looks, available on their Kickstarter page. On the crowdfunding site, the animated-series project raised $11.39 million from 88,887 Critical Role fans (affectionately referred to as “Critters”).
Watch Critical Role’s video introducing Bourassa as the lead character designer for “Legend of Vox Machina” (or at this link):
Pictured above (l. to r.): Percival de Rolo, Pike Trickfoot, Grog Strongjaw, Scanlan Shorthalt, Keyleth, Vax’ildan, Vex’ahlia
