Behind the voice: Earl Baylon's journey as Jonah in 'Tomb Raider' | ABS-CBN

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Behind the voice: Earl Baylon's journey as Jonah in 'Tomb Raider'

Behind the voice: Earl Baylon's journey as Jonah in 'Tomb Raider'

Yong Chavez,

TFC News

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Earl Baylon started his Hollywood career as an improv comedian.

In 2011, he booked a role that served as his big entry into the world of voice acting.

Two years later, “Tomb Raider,” the first in the Survivor trilogy video game series, was released where the Filipino-American actor made his debut as the voice of Jonah.

The kind, supportive, and strong character easily became one of the fan-favorites.

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That success led to other voice-acting roles, including in “Batman: Arkham Shadow” and “Trese.”

In the new series “Tomb Raider: The Legend of Lara Croft,” he reprises the role, standing side by side with the heroine in her many breathtaking missions.

"My process was looking at what was there on the page already and what the relationship felt like in the text," Baylon said of his approach to developing his personality through his voice. "What I tried to do was find the emotional core of the character."

Fil-Am actor Earl Baylon voices Jonah in Fil-Am actor Earl Baylon voices Jonah in "Tomb Raider" projects including the new Netflix animated series.

In the animated Netflix series, his experience with the recording process changed completely.

"For the video games, a lot of it was done in motion capture or performance capture," Baylon said. "We got to work with each other face to face. Whereas for the show, we're pretty much recording by ourselves."

Even Jonah's voice has subtly evolved with each game and project, a signature sound that the actor carefully crafted over time.

"If you listen to the voice in the first game, it's a little different. It’s a little closer to my actual voice," he said. "By the end of the first game, towards the tail end of us recording for it, it’s still very much my own voice but kind of pulled down into my chest."

Baylon, who grew up in Long Beach, California, is proud of his indie Filipino film “Lumpia with a Vengeance,” a project that was a decade in the making.

Courtesy: Netflix Courtesy: Netflix "Tomb Raider: The Legend of Lara Croft"

His passion for storytelling extends beyond “Tomb Raider,” but Jonah remains his longest-running role—and one of his favorites.

"I consider myself very lucky to be able to continue these 10 years," the Fil-Am said. "I think about how many other people really get to play a role for 10 years. I'm very grateful for the entire thing."

“Tomb Raider: The Legend of Lara Croft,” which stars “Captain America” actress Hayley Atwell in the title role, is out on Netflix.

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