Looking forward to Heroes Dutch Comic Con: The N.N. Edition

Oh yeahhh this weekend it is time for one of our favorite comic cons of the year. Yes we are talking about Heroes Dutch Comic Con Winter Edition 2025 and besides movie- and TV guests like Ian Somerhalder, Carl Lumbly and Dominic Monaghan, there are also a lot of voice and motion capture actors, like for example: Samuel Roukin, Tim Downie, Jane Perry and more. In this third and last article we are talking about two of the most popular voice actors of the moment. 

Nolan Ramsay North was born on 31 October 1970 in New Haven, Connecticut (U.S.) and spent his formative years in Warwick, Rhode Island (U.S.). Information about family and childhood is difficult to find. We do know that young Nolan was into sports and attended Bishop Hendricken High School (an all boys catholic high school) in Warwick. In high school Nolan loved to play baseball, which earned him a baseball scholarship to the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Due to a shoulder injury, Nolan had to stop playing baseball, but he graduated with a bachelor's degree in journalism. After his graduation, Nolan worked as a reporter in New Jersey for nearly a year (in the early 90's). After a year working for a small newspaper, however, he came to the conclusion that a career in journalism wasn't what he wanted. Nolan moved to New York City to pursue a career in the performing arts and he started to study acting. Besides getting screen and stage training in school, Nolan also did some stand up comedy on the side. He performed in comedy clubs to test his material and work on his timing. This also helped him to get comfortable in front of an audience and he learned how to improvise. All of these tactics helped him a lot in his later career.

In the mid 90s, Nolan moved to Los Angeles, where he landed his first big role on the daytime soap opera "Port Charles". He played the role of Dr. Chris Ramsey in 734 (!) episodes from 1997 until 2002. During his time on the show, Nolan grew out to be a versatile screen actor. While the job on "Port Charles" was a steady gig and provided him with the money to make ends meet, Nolan kept on searching for creative outlets to play with his strengths in comedy and improvisation. This search lead him to the world of voice-acting and Nolan started auditioning for voice (over) roles, mostly in animation and video games. In the years that followed (about 2000-2006), Nolan made a name for himself juggling screen roles and voice acting roles. Some of his most notable video game projects from this period are: "Everquest II" (2004, various character voices), "World of Warcraft" (2004, as Kairoz), "God of War" (2005, Hades/Greek soldier/Fisherman), "Ape Escape 3" (2005, as Tomoki), "Spongebob SquarePants: Lights, Camera, Pants!" (2005, as Gill Hammerstein), "Call of Duty" (2005, as Sgt. Randall), "Shrek Superslam" (2005, as Quasimodo), "Call of Duty 2: Big Red One" (2005, as Sgt. Randall), "Crash Tag Team Racing"(2005, as Dr. N. Gin), "Driver: Parallel Lines" (2006, as The Mexican), "Final Fantasy XII" (2006, as Vossler York Azelas), "Cars" (2006, as Modern Sedan),  "Avatar: The Last Airbender" (2006, additional voices) and "Marvel Ultimate Alliance" (2006, as Ghost Rider/Hawkeye/Colossus/Moon Knight).

After his first portrayal of Nathan Drake (in 2007), Nolan quickly became one of the busiest and most wanted voice actors in the industry. We will first give you an overview of some of the gaming projects, he worked on over the last 18 years: "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" (2007, as Raphael), "Spider-man 3" (2007, additional voices), "Surf's Up" (2007, as Renato), "Ratatouille" (2007, as Twitch), "Crash of the Titans" (2007, as Dr. N. Gin/Tiny Tiger/ Dingodile), "Assassin's Creed" (2007, as Desmond Miles/Abbas), "Unreal Tournament" (2007, as Bishop), "Destroy All Humans! Big Willy Unleashed" (2008, as Trahn/Ratpoo/Corncob King), "Zen Pinball" (2008, as Deadpool), "Crash: Mind over Mutant" (2008, as Dr. N. Gin), "Gears of War 2" (2008, as Jace Stratton), "Call of Duty: World at War" (2008, as Edward Richtofen), "Destroy All Humans! Path of the Furon" (2008, as Emperor Meningitis/Murray), "Prince of Persia"(2008, as The Prince), "Hulk vs." (2009, as Deadpool), "Halo Wars" (2009, as Sgt. John Forge), "Marvel: Ultimate Alliance 2" (2009, as Colossus), "Halo 3: ODST"(2009, as Romeo), "Assassin's Creed II" (as Desmond Miles/Adam), "How To Train Your Dragon" (2010, as Stoick), "Mafia II" (2010, as Alberto Clemente), "Spider-man: Shattered Dimensions" (2010, Ultimate Deadpool), "Naruto Shippûden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 2" (2010, as Madara Uchiha), "Call of Duty: Black Ops" (2010, as Richtofen), "Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" (2010, as Desmond Miles), "Tron: Evolution" (2010, as Behemoth), "Marvel vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds" (2011, as Deadpool), "SOCOM 4:  U.S. Navy SEALS" (2011, as Gorman), "Batman: Arkham City" (2011, as Oswald Cobblepot/ The Penguin), "The Lord of the Rings: War in the North" (2011, as Eredan/Nordri), "Assassin's Creed: Revelations" (2011, as Desmond Miles/Adam), "Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom 3" 2011, as Deadpool), Lego Batman 2: DC Super Heroes" (2012, as Scarecrow/Capt. Boomerang/Hush), "Marvel Pinball: Avengers Chronicles" (2012, Deadpool), "Assassin's Creed III" (2012, as Desmond Miles), "Call of Duty: Black Ops II" (2012, as Richtofen), "Marvel Heroes" (2013, as Deadpool), "The Last of Us" (2013, as David), "Deadpool" (2013, as Deadpool), "Call of Duty: Origins" (2013, as Richtofen), "Lego: Marvel Super Heroes" (2013, as Ant-Man/Cyclops/Deadpool/Green Goblin/Magneto), "Batman: Arkham Origins" (2013, as The Penguin), "Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag (2013, as Desmond Miles), "The Amazing Spider-Man 2" (2014, as Green Goblin/Harry Osborn/Kraven The Hunter), "Destiny" (2014, The Ghost), 

"Spider-Man Unlimited" (2014, as Green Goblin), "Disney Infinity: Marvel Super Heroes" (2014, as Rocket Raccoon/Green Goblin), "Lego DC Comics: Batman Be-Leaguered" (2014, as Superman/Alfred), "Lego Batman 3: Beyond Gotham" (2014, as Beast Boy/Mad Hatter and more), "Tales From the Borderlands" (2014, as August), "Lego: Jurassic World" (2015, as Lewis Dodgson), "Batman: Arkham Knight" (2015, as Oswald Cobblepot/The Penguin), "Disney Infinity 3.0" (2015, Rocket Raccoon/Green Goblin), "Destiny: The Taken King" (2015, Ghost), "Call of Duty: Black Ops III" (2015, Richtofen), "Der Eisendrache" (2016, Richtofen), "Zetsubou No Shima" (2016, Richtofen), "Gorod Krovi" (2016, Richtofen), "Con Man: The Game" (2016, Jerry Lansing), "Call of Duty: Revelations" (2016, Richtofen), "Mafia III" (2016, as Remy Duvall), "Halo Wars 2" (2017, Sergeant Forge), "Zombie Chronicles" (2017, Richtofen), "Fortnite" (2017, Tony Stark/Iron Man), "Destiny 2" (2017, Ghost), "God of War" (2018, Modi), "Destiny 2: Forsaken" (2018, Ghost), "Call of Duty: Black Ops 4" (2018, Richtofen), "Magic: The Gathering Arena" (2018, Jace Beleren), "Alpha Omega" (2019, Richtofen), "Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3: The Black Order" (2019, Wade Wilson/Deadpool/Rocket Raccoon), "Fortnite: Chapter 2" (2019, Iron Man), "Marvel’s Avengers" (2020, Iron Man/Tony Stark), "DiRT 5" (2020, Bruno Durand),  "Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla" (2020, Desmond Miles), "Destiny 2: Beyond Light" (2020, Ghost/Cayde-6), "Marvel Future Revolution" (2021, Wade Wilson/Deadpool/Rocket Raccoon), "Blaze and the Monster Machines" (2021, Blaze), "Destiny 2: The Witch Queen" (2022, Cayde-6/Ghost), "Marvel’s Midnight Suns" (2022, Wade Wilson/Deadpool), "God of War Ragnarök: Valhalla" (2023, Modi), "Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League" (2024, Superman/Penguin/ Oswald Cobblepot), "Batman: Arkham Shadows" (2024, Penguin), "Call of Duty: Black Ops 6" (2024, Richtofen), "Marvel Rivals" (2024, Rocket Raccoon), "Delta Force: Black Hawk Down Campaign" (2025, Sanderson), "Destiny 2: Edge of Fate" (2025, Ghost).

That is some list, right? Besides his roles in the video game industry, Nolan also had (voice) roles in TV series and movies. From 2010 until 2017, Nolan played the role of Peter Hastings in 28 episodes of "Pretty Little Liars". When we met him a few weeks ago, we talked to him about this role. He said he would have loved to be in the show more and that initially he was supposed to be. He couldn't however get a full contact because of contracts and so on. He also told us that at one point he was called in to play a scene, because the actress that played Mrs. Hastings had appendicitis. When he got the script the 's' of Mrs. was crossed out and he did the scene instead. He says it was clear that the show was all about the kids and that the adults were just replaceable. Since 2014, Nolan voices Blaze in the animation series "Blaze and the Monster Machines". He also voices Jim Prescott in the "Spirit" franchise and Stoick in the "How To Train Your Dragon" franchise. From 2015 until 2017, he played the role of Jerry Lansing in "Con Man". And recently, Nolan appeared in movies like: "Hayseed" (2023, as Don Fulcher), "The Shift" (2023, as Brett) and "Paradise Records" (2025, as Daryl). Of course we haven't touched the surface of the huge amount of credits on Nolan's name. If you want to learn about all of them, check out his IMDb page. As we already mentioned we met Nolan a few weeks ago and we had so much fun talking to him about "Uncharted" and "Pretty Little Liars".

Neil Christie Newbon was born on 14 August 1977 in Birmingham, England (UK). He is the son of Gary and Katie Newbon. Neil has a twin brother named Laurence ( a cameraman ) and a younger sister named Claire ( a journalist ). Neil's father Gary, is a well known sports presenter on British TV. While the exact profession of Neil's mom Katie, is unclear, we do know that she is very creative and wrote musicals and pantomimes. Coming from a creative family, Neil has been a storyteller from a young age. He says he was obsessed with stories and did a lot of reading. As a child, Neil was also an avid gamer and he used to spend a lot of time on the ZX Spectrum console. He said he didn't just play the games, but he also crafted stories around them. He also did some ballet dancing as a kid and performing intrigued him from a young age. It was Neil's mother, who slowly introduced him to the arts. As he got older, his mother used to take him to Stratford-Upon-Avon to see Shakespeare plays. All of this led Neil to the idea that performance wasn't just entertainment, but a craft. There isn't a lot to be found about Neil's early education, but he did talk a lot about being bullied in school for quite some time. He thinks that the reason for the bullying was the fact that he was different. He did feel like an outsider among most of his peers. Neil found solace in the game that would play an important role later in his life. Through playing 'Dungeons&Dragons' and other tabletop role playing games, Neil found a community and built strong and lifelong friendships.

As a teenager, Neil wanted nothing more than to become a professional actor. He did, however, promise his parents that he would finish his A-levels first. This is why he resisted the urge to move to London and stayed in Birmingham to finish school. At one point, Neil was accepted into the internationally renowned National Youth Theater (in London), led by actor Edward Wilson. He also joined the Central Television Workshop in Birmingham (at that time led by Colin Edwards). He started doing plays and early dramas. Through the National Youth Theater, Neil got spotted by an agent when he was 19 years old. After he finished his A-levels, he turned professional at 20 years of age. After a few years at the National Youth Theater, Neil went on to the renowned Giles Foreman Center of Acting, where he studied method acting and other acting techniques. Early on in his career he had some small TV roles, but he mostly performed on stage at places like The Royal Court Theater, The Bloomsbury Theater and The Edinburgh Fringe. In the early zeroes, Neil makes the transition from stage to screen and in 2001 he plays the role of Quinten (aged 16) in "The Discovery of Heaven" (a movie adaptation of Harry Mulisch's book with the same name). In 2002, he played Ernst Robinson in the adventure movie "Stranded". In 2003/2004, Neil plays football player Luke Davenport in the sports drama TV show "Dream Team". In 2006, Neil plays alongside Billy Zane, Nick Moran, Tommy Flanagan, Sean Pertwee, Michael Madsen and Alexander Skårsgard in the war drama "The Last Drop". In 2008, he plays Trent in the drama movie "The Run". It was around this time, that Neil was very close to quitting acting for good. He said that he wasn't earning much, so he was doing a lot of part time work on the side to make ends meet. He also said he was getting a bit disillusioned with himself as an actor and he was on the brink of quitting, when he read an article about "Tom Raider" and the character of Lara Croft (voiced by Keeley Hawes at the time). At the end of the article, the craft of mocap (motion capturing) was mentioned. Neil was intrigued and felt like he had nothing to lose. He contacted the people at the motion capture studio Audio Motion. This was a turning point in his life.

At one point, he was called in to audition for Ubisoft's game "Ghost Recon: Future Soldier" and the landed the role of 30K in 2012 game. For that character he did the voice work as well as the mocap. Also in 2012, Neil joined the cast of the long running British soap series "Hollyoaks". Neil landed the role of antagonist Simon Walker. He later mentioned that he loved the character like a brother (although he was very ambiguous). He played the role for 63 episodes (2012-2013) in "Hollyoaks" and 4 episodes in the spin-off "Hollyoaks Later". In the years that followed Neil had some small roles on TV, but his career started shifting to voice acting and mocap more and more. Let's sum up some of the projects he worked on over the last decade or so. Among his credits over the last ten years are: "Kingsglaive: Final Fantasy XV" (2016, as Petra Fortis), "Spacelords" (2017 Video Game, voice), "Planet of the Apes: Last Frontier" (2017, Video Game, as Bryn), "Wallis: The Queen That Never Was" (2017, documentary drama, as Win Spencer),"Detroit: Become Human" (2018, Video Game, as Elijah Kamski/Gavin Reed), "Resident Evil 3" (2020, Video Game, as Nicholai Ginovaef), "Resident Evil Village" (2021, Video Game, as Karl Heisenberg), "Xenoblade Chronicles 3" (2022, Video Game, as Zeon), "Resident Evil Village: Shadow of Rose" (2022, Video Game, as Karl Heisenberg), "Deliver Us Mars" (2023, Video Game, as Isaac Johanson),"Baldur's Gate III" (2023, Video Game, as Astarion) and "Fallout: London (2024, Video Game, as Barry the Boat). Most recently he played Lumacchio in "Lies of P: Overture" (2025), Franz in "Burned" (2025) and Chase Lowry in "Dead Take" (2025). Especially his role as Astarian made Neil a big star and he is immensely popular. He also seems to be great with fans, so do not hesitate and take this chance to meet him at Heroes Dutch Comic Con this upcoming weekend.