How a Modern Man Became a Little Pony
My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic is the story of a unicorn pony named Twilight Sparkle who travels with her five pony friends, each of which is represents a characteristic of friendship. Travelling through the sovereign state of Equestria, the group helps others while navigating the ups and downs of friendship. This production has the esteemed status of being the highest rated original program in the history of Hub Network. Discovery Family has also aired this series which is currently available on Netfilx (seasons 1–8) as well. In addition to its incredible ratings, the show has proven a major merchandising earner for parent company Hasbro. Airing since 2010, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic has led to feature films and spin-off shows.
Zack has voiced multiple ponies for the show. As the blank flank Skeedaddle (a blank flank is someone who doesn’t have a cutie mark. Cutie marks are located on the flanks or haunches and are often related to the personality, proclivity, or talent of the character), he rejects the persuasion of Rumble’s “resistance.” The role even afforded him the opportunity to exercise his inner pop star by contributing back-up vocals for a featured song in one episode.
Conversely, LeBlanc delivered a somewhat nervous character as the aptly named Star Tracker. When Star Tracker wins a raffle to spend the day with Twilight Sparkle (the main character of the series, voice by Tara Strong) he is struck with a case of celebrity pony worship. Zach concedes that he was tentative about how the online community would respond to a story about personal space for celebrities but notes, “I had hoped people’s reaction would be mixed, some finding his awkwardness endearing and others annoying. I got a lot of both sides of that online. I even got a piece of fan mail for this character. The fan told me he originally found the character annoying but ended up at a convention and found he rambled and didn’t know how to behave around famous people. As a result, the character really grew on him. This episode is called Once Upon a Zeppelin.”
An accomplished actor who has been appeared on programs like Fox’s (currently on Netflix) Lucifer, Zach LeBlanc has found himself steering towards voice acting in recent years. Noting its timelessness and lack of type casting as major benefits, his work on My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic is undeniable proof of this, as well as his talent. LeBlanc is likely the happiest five-and-a-half-foot Canadian man who moonlights as a pony in a magical land called Equestria.
