The Simpsons: 10 Best Characters Voiced By Harry Shearer

3. Mr Burns

The Simpsons Kent Brockman
20th Television

The adversary to pretty much the whole of Springfield, but particularly to Homer Simpson, the vindictive Montgomery Burns is arguably Shearer's most memorable creation. However he is just too evil to place any higher on this list!

A man of indeterminable age, but undeniable cruelty, Mr Burns heads up the nuclear power plant and has been a key component of the show from the very first episode.

Shearer found the inspiration for Burns' sinister voice using a combination of Lionel Barrymore and Ronald Reagan, and whilst the vocal performance may come across as effortless, it is one of the ones that is harshest on Shearer's vocal chords, as it is so far removed from his natural speaking voice.

Shearer also provides the voices for Burns' assistant, Smithers, and if you have ever seen some of the behind the scenes stuff from the show, you will notice that he can switch between these two voices with remarkable ease. Truly a testament to his talents!

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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...