Introduction
Thomas McGrath is an American voice actor, animator and filmmaker. He is known for the DreamWorks animated film Madagascar, which he co-wrote and directed with Eric Darnell while voicing the character of Skipper the Penguin. The film spawned two direct sequels, along with a spin-off animated series and film based on the penguins, with McGrath reprising his role as Skipper in all cases. McGrath also directed the DreamWorks animated films Megamind (2010) and The Boss Baby (2017), the latter of which received an Academy Award and Golden Globe Award nomination. McGrath returned as director for its 2021 sequel.
Life and career
McGrath was born and raised in Lynnwood, Washington. He studied Industrial Design at the University of Washington and graduated from the Character Animation program at Cal Arts. McGrath's experience in both television and feature animation includes work as an animator on Cool World and Space Jam, storyboard artist and director for seasons 3-5 of The Ren & Stimpy Show, and storyboard artist on the live action film Cats & Dogs. He worked as a storyboard artist, concept artist and prop and set designer for How the Grinch Stole Christmas. McGrath also stepped in on Flushed Away by Aardman, the creators of The Curse of the Were-Rabbit, to help make improvements prior to its release.
McGrath made his film directing debut as the co-director and co-writer of Madagascar along with Eric Darnell, where he also voiced the leader of the squad of penguin characters, Skipper. He reprised his role as Skipper and co-directed and co-wrote the sequel, Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa, and co-directed Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted. He worked on The Penguins of Madagascar, a spin-off TV series, as a creative consultant and as the voice of Skipper. He directed Megamind, released in November 2010.
In 2017, he directed The Boss Baby and the 2021 sequel The Boss Baby: Family Business.
Filmography
Feature films
| Year | Title | Director | Writer | Producer | Art / Animation department | Voice actor | Voice role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1992 | Cool World | No | No | No | Yes | No | animation designer animator layout artist | |
| 1996 | Space Jam | No | No | No | Yes | No | animator | |
| 1998 | Hercules and Xena – The Animated Movie: The Battle for Mount Olympus | No | No | No | Yes | No | key animator layout artist | |
| 2000 | How the Grinch Stole Christmas | No | No | No | Yes | No | storyboard artist | |
| 2001 | Cats & Dogs | No | No | No | Yes | No | ||
| 2005 | Madagascar | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Skipper Fossa Panicky Man on Subway | co-directed with Eric Darnell co-written with Mark Burton, Billy Frolick and Eric Darnell |
| 2006 | Flushed Away | No | No | No | No | Yes | Action Figure Artist | |
| 2007 | Shrek the Third | No | No | No | No | Yes | Gary | |
| 2008 | Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Skipper Lemur | co-directed with Eric Darnell co-written with Etan Cohen and Eric Darnell |
| 2009 | Monsters vs. Aliens | No | No | No | Yes | Yes | Wilson | |
| 2010 | Megamind | Yes | No | Yes | No | Yes | Lord Scott Prison Guard | |
| 2011 | Puss in Boots | No | No | No | No | Yes | Bar Thief | |
| 2012 | Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted | Yes | No | No | No | Yes | Skipper First Policeman | co-directed with Eric Darnell & Conrad Vernon |
| 2014 | Mr. Peabody & Sherman | No | Yes | No | No | Yes | Odysseus | |
| 2014 | Penguins of Madagascar | No | No | Yes | No | Yes | Skipper | executive producer |
| 2017 | The Boss Baby | Yes | No | No | No | Yes | TV Chef | |
| 2021 | The Boss Baby: Family Business | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Dr. Tiffany Hamilton | executive producer Story co-written with Michael McCullers Writer of Global Warming Song co-written by Hans Zimmer, Steve Mazzaro and Nelson Yokota |
| 2022 | Paws of Fury: The Legend of Hank | No | No | No | No | Yes | Additional Voices | |
| 2024 | Kung Fu Panda 4 | No | No | No | No | Yes | Croc Crime Boss |
Short films
| Year | Title | Director | Writer | Art / Animation department | Actor | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1988 | The Thing What Lurked in the Tub | No | No | Yes | No | monster animator | |
| 1988 | Lea Press on Limbs | No | No | No | Yes | (voice) | |
| 1993 | The D.A.R.E. Report: The Land of Decisions and Choices | No | No | Yes | No | character layout | |
| 1995 | The Louie N' Louie Show | Yes | No | Yes | No | storyboard artist | |
| 1999 | Herd | No | No | No | Yes | Fed No. 5 | live-action role |
| 2001 | Imp, Inc. | No | No | Yes | No | animation layout | |
| 2005 | The Madagascar Penguins in a Christmas Caper | No | No | No | Yes | Skipper (voice) | |
| 2009 | Merry Madagascar | No | Yes | No | Yes | Skipper (voice) Additional voices | |
| 2013 | Madly Madagascar | No | No | No | Yes | Skipper (voice) | |
| 2014 | Almost Home | No | No | No | Yes | Jeff (voice) |
Television series
| Year | Title | Director | Art / Animation department | Creative consultant | Actor | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1993–1996 | The Ren & Stimpy Show | Yes | Yes | No | No | director (1 episode "I Was a Teenage Stimpy") layout artist (21 episodes) background designer (14 episodes) storyboard artist (10 episodes) | |
| 1996 | KaBlam! | Yes | Yes | No | No | director & storyboard artist (segment "The Louie and Louie Show") | |
| 1998 | Oh Yeah! Cartoons | No | Yes | No | No | background designer (segment "A Cop and His Donut") | |
| 2008–2015 | The Penguins of Madagascar | No | No | Yes | Yes | Skipper (voice) | 88 episodes |
| 2014 | All Hail King Julien | No | No | Yes | No |
Video games
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | Madagascar | Skipper (voice) | Uncredited |
| 2005 | Madagascar: Animal Trivia DVD Game | ||
| 2007 | Shrek the Third | ||
| 2008 | Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa | ||
| 2009 | Madagascar Kartz | ||
| 2011 | The Penguins of Madagascar: Dr. Blowhole Returns – Again! | ||
| 2011 | Super Star Kartz | ||
| 2012 | Madagascar 3: The Video Game |