The Big Picture

Keegan-Michael Key and Awkwafina share a love for animation and have both voiced multiple bird characters in different projects. “Migration” stands out among other animated movies due to its stunning production design, camera work, and relatable story. Key prepares for voiceover work by making sure his voice is rested, while Awkwafina emphasizes not blowing out her voice and coming to the recording session with a healthy voice.

Both Keegan-Michael Key and Awkwafina are best known for their many contributions to comedy, whether that be in television or film. From Key’s sketches with Jordan Peele in Key and Peele and Comedy Central’s Awkwafina is Nora from Queens, their presence elevates the humor for any project. While working on Illumination’s latest animated feature Migration, the duo found out they had something else pretty unique in common.

From Mike White (The White Lotus), Migration takes audiences on a heartwarming adventure when a family of ducks convince their overprotective father, Mack Mallard (voiced by Kumail Nanjiani), to take flight for a Jamaican vacation. Encouraged by his wife Pam (Elizabeth Banks), the Mallard family sets out on the trip of a lifetime where they encounter all kinds of obstacles and new friends along the way. Migration also features the vocal talents of Danny DeVito, Carole Kane, David Mitchell, and more.

Two of those new feathery friends are Chump (Awkwafina) and Delroy (Key), who the Mallard family come across on their travels through the treacherous New York City. During an interview with Collider’s Steve Weintraub, the duo discuss what they love about this project, what sets it apart from other animated movies, and how they both discovered an interesting shared tidbit about themselves when joining the Migration cast. They reveal the most important aspect of voiceover work, their pitch for the Chump and Delroy prequel, and talk about their upcoming projects, Kung Fu Panda 4 and Transformers One. Check it all out in the video above, or the full transcript below.

Migration A family of ducks try to convince their overprotective father to go on the vacation of a lifetime. Release Date December 22, 2023 Director Benjamin Renner , Guylo Homsy Rating PG Writers Benjamin Renner , Mike White

COLLIDER: I love starting with a curveball at the beginning, so the curveball for you guys, both of you have done some really cool stuff, besides this movie, which we’re gonna get into, if someone has never seen anything you’ve done, what is the first thing you’d like them watching and why?

KEEGAN-MICHAEL KEY: Oh god, that’s good, Steve. You did it. You really did it.

AWKWAFINA: Wow, that’s not even a curveball, that’s like crazy.

KEY: You pitched a perfect game on that one.

AWKWAFINA: You just blasted it into another dimension. What would I have them start with? You know what, maybe my show. That seems about right, right?

KEY: Yeah, that makes sense. I mean, the obvious answer is that you should just watch “Substitute Teacher,” and then go from there. Do whatever you want. Go down whatever rabbit hole that takes you down. That’s, I think, where people should start. It’s kind of like the primer for me.

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For both of you, what is the most nervous you were the night before the first day of filming, where you’re like, “Oh my god, I’m about to do this…?”

KEY: Maybe The Predator. Maybe it was The Predator because we had done so much training. I wanted so badly to look like a soldier. I was like, “Please let me just look something like a soldier. Something. Yeah, I think I was really nervous before that. No, not that — Jingle Jangle [A Christmas Journey]. It was Jingle Jangle. It was the dancing. It was the dancing in Jingle Jangle. Yeah, that’s what it was for me.

AWKWAFINA: That sounds nerve wracking. I would say every one in the beginning, every single time. You always hit that level of, like, “Oh my god, am I gonna be able to pull it off?”

Jumping into this project, when did you both decide that you wanted to be the voice in like every upcoming animated project?

KEY: [Laughs] It’s almost like it wasn’t our choice. It’s like it just started happening. And also, the other thing that we’ve remarked upon that’s been really interesting is…

AWKWAFINA: We played birds so many times.

KEY: We play birds all the time. You’ve played five birds and I’ve played four birds. It took me a while, I had to count them down, and then I counted them down and I’ve played four birds.

AWKWAFINA: And it’s not like the best way to open up, for me personally, my Tinder profile. You know what I mean? It’s not like the best opener — and we’re at Buffalo Wild Wings of all places.

What Sets ‘Migration’ Apart from Other Animated Movies

So I really enjoyed this movie. I think Mike White’s script mixed with Benjamin’s direction, it’s a really good movie. What are you both really excited for audiences to see? I’m being really sincere about this.

KEY: I’m really excited — and I’m being serious about this — for people to simply see it. The production design, how beautiful the movie is, and some of the camera work is something I don’t think I’ve seen a lot in animation, especially in the city scenes. When they’re in the cities and how the camera zips around and goes around buildings and leaves the birds and comes back to the birds, the camera work’s really great. It’s absolutely sumptuous to see. I think people are gonna be really surprised at how beautiful it is.

AWKWAFINA: I think Benjamin did an amazing job. It’s very visually stunning, and I think that it’s heartwarming, it’s funny, and it should be seen in theaters.

I completely agree. I hope I word this right, but what I really liked is that there were just no dumb jokes. There’s like no fart jokes, no stupid jokes. It’s all earned, the humor, through story.

KEY: Yeah, I think that’s a really good way of putting it. There is physical humor there, there’s kind of fun fall-down humor, but it’s all cause and effect. I think it all happens for a reason and the right characters are doing it at the right time.

AWKWAFINA: Yeah, and there’s a genuine story there. I think it’s very obviously relatable.

You both have done a lot of voiceover. How do you get ready the night before the morning you’re going into the booth, because you’ve done it so much? Is there a mental thing or or do you just know what you’re getting at this point now? How does it work?

AWKWAFINA: The one thing is that you just make sure you don’t blow out your voice the night before. That’s the worst thing that can happen. If you can come wherever you’re recording with your voice, then it’s all workable.

KEY: That’s really good. Yeah, you have to have your voice in tact.

AWKWAFINA: You have to have your voice. That’s the only thing.

KEY: It does help to be rested. Like, I try to be rested before a voiceover session because if you’re tired it takes something out of you. It’s like you can’t get to where you need to get to vocally sometimes.

AWKWAFINA: Like when you say a word over and over again, you don’t want to get into that zone where nothing makes sense anymore.

Keegan-Michael Key on Voicing Bumblebee in ‘Transformers One’
Image via Paramount Pictures

I have an individual question for each of you. I can’t believe you’re gonna be voicing Bumblebee in Transformers One. Chris and Scarlett have said to me that the footage looks really cool. I’m curious what it’s like voicing Bumblebee. And I watched the trailer for Kung Fu Panda 4 this morning and noticed that you have another big animated thing. What can you tease about your role in that?

AWKWAFINA: Just that it was incredibly fun to work, obviously again, with Jack, who I think is an incredible performer.

KEY: That’s great, I didn’t know that you were doing that. That’s awesome.

AWKWAFINA: Yeah, thank you.

Like I said, it’s almost like you guys are dominating every upcoming animated project.

AWKWAFINA: We’re thinking of our own, we’re trying to work on.

KEY: We’re trying to work out, “What are we gonna do on our own thing?”

AWKWAFINA: We’re gonna do our own little diddly where it’s a prequel…

KEY: …to Migration. Specifically Chump and Delroy. We’re thinking we might do that. And then we’ll do other voices in that movie.

AWKWAFINA: We should. [Laughs] We should voice the entire movie.

KEY: For playing Bumblebee, it’s funny, [there’s] not a lot of affectation to my voice. The director of this, he goes, “I really want your voice. I just want Keegan’s voice.” So it’s kind of Keegan as Bumblebee. You’ll see. It’s interesting. Unlike this, where I’m working in a dialect or I’m doing something like Super Mario Bros. where I’m really trying to disguise my voice, this one I’m bringing a lot of me to it.

Migration is in theaters now.

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