by Beyoncé Takes Flight in Her First Animated Role
Pop icon Beyoncé has conquered the worlds of music, film, and fashion, but in 2013 she dipped her toes into a new realm: animation voice acting. In the fantasy adventure Epic, Beyoncé lent her voice to the regal yet fierce Queen Tara, the ruler of the good forces protecting the hidden forest world. It marked her first time taking on an animated character and allowed the multi-talented artist to flex new creative muscles.
Epic was produced by Blue Sky Studios, the animation powerhouse behind box office hits like Ice Age and Rio. Directed by Chris Wedge, Epic tells the story of teenager M.K. (Amanda Seyfried), who finds herself magically shrunken down to just a few inches tall after an encounter with a magical pod in the forest near her new home. She soon discovers that this miniature world is home to an ongoing battle between the forces of good, led by Queen Tara, and the evil Boggans, who want to destroy the forest. With the help of Nod (Colin Farrell), a rebel soldier, M.K. must team up with Queen Tara to save the forest before it’s too late.
Beyoncé was drawn to the project by the opportunity to play a strong, empowering female character like Queen Tara. In the film, Tara is a noble and wise ruler dedicated to protecting her people and their way of life. As the leader of the Leafmen army, she bravely fights to defend the forest from the Boggans. Beyoncé relished bringing such a multifaceted character to life through her voice performance alone.
“Queen Tara is a very powerful character who is fighting for what she believes in,” Beyoncé said in an interview. “I loved that she is a fierce warrior but also a nurturing mother figure. Even though this was my first time voicing an animated role, I really connected with Tara on a personal level.”
Recording the voice work allowed Beyoncé to flex her dramatic acting chops without relying on her physical presence. Bringing an animated character to life through vocal performance alone requires conveying emotion, personality, and nuance solely with one’s voice. It was a new challenge for the multi-talented artist, who was more used to expressing herself through singing, dancing, and on-camera acting in films and music videos.
Beyoncé worked closely with the directors to develop Queen Tara’s regal bearing, authoritative leadership style, and complex emotional range. One particularly moving scene for Beyoncé came when Tara picks a magical pod that allows her to see visions of the future. The scene resonated deeply with Beyoncé, who was herself expecting her first child with husband Jay-Z around the same time.
“Recording that pod scene was very emotional for me. I think picking that pod and seeing glimpses of motherhood really struck a chord in me at that time in my life,” Beyoncé reflected. “It was an incredible experience to be a part of bringing such a powerful character to the screen, especially during such a personal time in my own journey.”
Beyoncé poured her heart into voicing Queen Tara, seen most vividly in the character’s most dramatic moments. When Tara’s daughter is put in danger by the Boggans, she fearlessly jumps into battle with a ferocity to protect her people and family. Beyoncé’s vocal performance captured Tara’s full range of emotion from tenderness to fury. Her nuanced line delivery elevated the character and helped drive the plot in a way that would not have been possible without her talent and commitment.
Epic director Chris Wedge was impressed by Beyoncé’s dedication to the role. “She really threw herself into the character of Queen Tara,” he said. “You could hear in her voice all the layers of the character – her strength, her vulnerability, her care for her people. Beyoncé has such an incredible instrument as a singer but she showed in this role that she is a truly gifted actress as well.”
The film was a box office success, grossing over $268 million worldwide against a $93 million budget. Critics praised Beyoncé’s vocal performance, with one noting that she “brings just the right balance of authority, compassion and fierceness to the role.” Her take on Queen Tara helped elevate the animated fantasy adventure and added greater emotional weight and complexity.
Epic marked Beyoncé’s first major foray into voice acting, but it showed she has a natural gift for the subtle art of bringing animated characters to life through vocal performance alone. While she remains best known as a global music and fashion icon, the role proved she is also a tremendously talented voice actress capable of conveying deep emotion and nuance with her instrument. It opened the door for potential future animated roles that allow her to flex new creative muscles outside of her core competencies. For Beyoncé, Queen Tara in Epic was just the beginning of an exciting new chapter in her already remarkable multi-hyphenate career.
