The Simpsons: 10 Best Characters Voiced By Harry Shearer

5. Kent Brockman

The Simpsons Kent Brockman
20th Century Fox

Newscaster Kent Brockman might be one of the lesser used Simpsons background characters, however he is also perhaps one of the closest to Harry Shearer himself as he had previously had involvement in newscasting on a radio programme, early on in his career.

A far cry from the amiable Shearer however, Kent Brockman is frequently unsympathetic, snobbish and resentful, an astutely observed character embodying all that we love to hate about journalists!

Where Shearer sought inspiration from his early career for the voice of Brockman, the character design was based on Los Angeles anchormen Hal Fishman and Jerry Dunphy, and an additional fun fact, he was brought to life by Brad Bird, later known for his involvement with Pixar.

Few people deliver an acerbic quip and a dry witticism as well as Kent Brockman, and we have Harry Shearer to thank for making this background character stand out.

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I have been writing about film for almost 5 years, contributing to sites including WhatCulture, JumpCut Online, Cineworld, and Zavvi. I also host a couple of podcasts, JumpCast and Let's Jaws for a Minute. You can often find me on the internet evangelising about Disney or why Jaws is the greatest film ever made...