Performer
A performer whose catalogue work here is strong, with the fuller case still to be made.
Nutevio rank
#164
of 909177 performers
Top 1%
Laraine Newman represents the rare performer whose career became more ambitious with every decade — 41 years in, and Laraine is still choosing the harder script.
The essay
Our editors on the work, the patterns and the reason this body of work holds together.
Laraine Newman appears in 50 films in the Nutevio catalogue, and none of them would work the same way without Laraine. WALL·E is the clearest case: a film rated 8.4 by our editors, where the performance carries weight the script only implies.
The recognisable elements are versatility, transformation, comedy. Watch two of these films back to back and the method separates from the material — the same instrument, tuned differently for documentary, science fiction, comedy. It is a style built on what is withheld as much as what is played.
Working with Morgan Neville, Daniel Chong, Aaron Horvath and others, Laraine Newman helped set a standard other performers now audition against. Awards bodies have been slower than the work, which is usually the sign of a career built on choices rather than campaigns.
WALL·E (2008) as Additional Voices (voice) · The Super Mario Galaxy Movie (2026) as Additional Voices (voice) · Up (2009) as Additional Voices (voice)
Career snapshot
Ranked #164 of 909177 performers tracked in the Nutevio library.
Films in Nutevio
50
1985–2026
Career length
41 yrs
Measured across our catalogue
Academy Awards
—
Unknown
Oscar nominations
—
Unknown
Highest Nutevio score
8.4
WALL·E
Average Nutevio score
6.8
Across catalogue work
Highest IMDb rating
8.3
The Super Mario Galaxy Movie
Most frequent director
Chris Renaud
5 films together
Longest collaboration
5×
With Chris Renaud
Most common genre
Family
40 titles
Average runtime
1h 29m
Across catalogue work
Golden Globe wins
—
Unknown
Nutevio metric
Ten weighted categories, applied identically to everyone we cover.
Nutevio Performer Score
7.0
out of 10
A performer whose catalogue work here is strong, with the fuller case still to be made.
Nutevio metric
Cultural impact and legacy, measured separately from craft — how far the work travelled once it left the cinema.
Nutevio Influence Score
6.9
out of 10
A quieter influence — felt inside the films rather than across the industry.
How far the work travelled past the people who saw it first.
What survives once the release-week conversation has burned off.
Institutional acknowledgement, weighted but never decisive.
Years of chosen, relevant work rather than years merely employed.
Statuettes, read as evidence rather than verdict.
Roles named without needing the film named alongside them.
Directors who wrote parts because this performer existed.
The reading other performers now have to answer.
Actor DNA
A fingerprint derived from the roles themselves — register, range and the kind of film they carry.
The shape of a career
Every performance plotted in time. Hover a point to read the title behind it.
Peak years
Where the scores, the awards and the sheer volume of work agree with each other.
Best decade
2000s
7.0 average MV
The 2000s are where the work and the material meet. Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, Up, WALL·E — the run our editors reach for first when the argument is about range rather than fame.
Highest average Nutevio score
2000s
7.0
Across 12 catalogue films in this decade, our scores never drop below the level a career is judged on.
Highest average IMDb rating
2020s
6.9
The public agrees most strongly about this stretch — useful context, and occasionally a decade behind our own reading.
Most awarded era
1980s
0 Academy Awards
Statuettes for the films themselves, which is the honest way to read an ensemble career. Perfect.
Most productive era
2010s
18 films
The busiest stretch of the catalogue — volume that reads as appetite rather than availability.
Range, mapped
Genres down the side, decades across the top. Warmer cells mean stronger titles.
| Genre | 1980s | 1990s | 2000s | 2010s | 2020s |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Drama | 5.61 film | 7.21 film | — | 6.82 films | — |
| Action | — | — | 6.11 film | 6.72 films | 7.43 films |
| Comedy | — | 6.43 films | 6.89 films | 6.814 films | 6.812 films |
| Romance | 5.61 film | — | — | 5.41 film | — |
Chronology
Firsts and peaks
The turning points, in the order they happened.
First film in Nutevio
1985Perfect
Where our catalogue meets this career, as Linda.
Highest rated performance · Career peak
2008WALL·E
8.4 on the Nutevio scale, the top of the catalogue for this performer. Weighing billing against the film's own quality, this is the point where everything aligned at once.
Most recent film
The current state of the argument, as Additional Voices (voice).
Our order
Every performance in the catalogue, ordered by Nutevio Score.
Every title
Filter by genre or decade, and compare any two titles side by side.
50 of 50 films
as Additional Voices (voice)
Directed by Andrew Stanton
as Additional Voices (voice)
Directed by Aaron Horvath
as Additional Voices (voice)
Directed by Pete Docter
as Additional Voices (voice)
Directed by Daniel Chong
as Additional Voices (voice)
Directed by Pete Docter
From the library
Every movie and TV credit stored for this name in the Nutevio catalogue — filter by media, role or sort by rating.
Loading credits…
The defining work
#1
Additional Voices (voice)
WALL·E (2008)
Performance score8.1
The performance the rest of the career is read through. Additional Voices (voice) gives Laraine Newman a structure to work against, and the film hands over its centre of gravity without hesitation.
View movie#2
Additional Voices (voice)
The Super Mario Galaxy Movie (2026)
Performance score8.0
The Super Mario Galaxy Movie asks for something the previous films did not, and gets it. Additional Voices (voice) is played without a single line of pleading for the audience's sympathy — which is exactly why it lands.
View movie#3
Additional Voices (voice)
Up (2009)
Performance score7.9
Up asks for something the previous films did not, and gets it. Additional Voices (voice) is played without a single line of pleading for the audience's sympathy — which is exactly why it lands.
View movie#4
Additional Voices (voice)
Hoppers (2026)
Performance score7.8
Hoppers asks for something the previous films did not, and gets it. Additional Voices (voice) is played without a single line of pleading for the audience's sympathy — which is exactly why it lands.
View movieStart here
A guided path through the work, ordered so each film explains the next.
Best entry point
as Additional Voices (voice)
Start here. WALL·E is the clearest statement of what Laraine Newman does — accessible, 98 minutes, and rated 8.4 by our editors. No context required.
Our editors order this path by accessibility first and chronology second. You meet Laraine at the most legible performance, then move forward in time so each film reads as a response to the one before it rather than a repetition of it.
Up (2009)
Keeps the family register of WALL·E but asks for a colder reading of it.
Inside Out (2015)
Same director as Up, different problem to solve. Watching them in order shows how much of the effect was the collaboration.
The Super Mario Galaxy Movie (2026)
Keeps the comedy register of Inside Out but asks for a colder reading of it.
Hoppers (2026)
Keeps the comedy register of The Super Mario Galaxy Movie but asks for a colder reading of it.
Company kept
The directors and performers this career keeps returning to.
Chris Renaud
Director
5 films together
Notably Despicable Me 4
Pete Docter
Director
3 films together
Notably Up
Kyle Balda
Director
3 films together
Notably The Sheep Detectives
Brian Levant
Director
2 films together
Notably Jingle All the Way
Andrew Stanton
Director
2 films together
Notably WALL·E
Scott Mosier
Director
2 films together
Notably Minions & More 2
James Bridges
Director
1 film together
Notably Perfect
Terry Gilliam
Director
1 film together
Notably Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas
John A. Davis
Director
1 film together
Notably Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius
Steve Oedekerk
Director
1 film together
Notably Barnyard
Carlos Saldanha
Director
1 film together
Notably Ice Age: The Meltdown
John Lasseter
Director
1 film together
Notably Cars
Phil Lord
Director
1 film together
Notably Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs
Byron Howard
Director
1 film together
Notably Tangled
Lee Unkrich
Director
1 film together
Notably Toy Story 3
Michael Chang
Director
1 film together
Notably Superman vs. The Elite
Kevin Pollak
Director
1 film together
Notably The Late Bloomer
Garth Jennings
Director
1 film together
Notably Sing
Stéphane Benhamou
Director
1 film together
Notably Fantastic Mr. Murray
Francisco Ruiz Velasco
Director
1 film together
Notably Trollhunters: Rise of the Titans
Darrell Van Citters
Director
1 film together
Notably Tom and Jerry: Snowman's Land
Brendon Small
Director
1 film together
Notably Metalocalypse: Army of the Doomstar
Peter Browngardt
Director
1 film together
Notably The Day the Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Movie
Ron Howard
Director
1 film together
Notably Jim Henson Idea Man
Brent Hodge
Director
1 film together
Notably Downey Wrote That
Peter Hastings
Director
1 film together
Notably Dog Man
Pierre Coffin
Director
1 film together
Notably Minions & Monsters
Aaron Horvath
Director
1 film together
Notably The Super Mario Galaxy Movie
Daniel Chong
Director
1 film together
Notably Hoppers
Morgan Neville
Director
1 film together
Notably Lorne
Behind the camera
Who casts this performer, how often, and what the pairing produces.
Chris Renaud
Director
5 films together · 6.8 avg MV
A working relationship rather than a booking — 5 films, and the register shifts each time.
Best film together
Despicable Me 4Pete Docter
Director
3 films together · 8.1 avg MV
A working relationship rather than a booking — 3 films, and the register shifts each time.
Best film together
UpKyle Balda
Director
3 films together · 6.9 avg MV
A working relationship rather than a booking — 3 films, and the register shifts each time.
Best film together
The Sheep DetectivesAndrew Stanton
Director
2 films together · 8.3 avg MV
A working relationship rather than a booking — 2 films, and the register shifts each time.
Best film together
WALL·EScott Mosier
Director
2 films together · 7.2 avg MV
A working relationship rather than a booking — 2 films, and the register shifts each time.
Best film together
Minions & More 2Brian Levant
Director
2 films together · 6.0 avg MV
A working relationship rather than a booking — 2 films, and the register shifts each time.
Best film together
Jingle All the WayAaron Horvath
Director
1 film together · 8.3 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
The Super Mario Galaxy MovieDaniel Chong
Director
1 film together · 8.1 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
HoppersLee Unkrich
Director
1 film together · 8.1 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Toy Story 3Ron Howard
Director
1 film together · 7.9 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Jim Henson Idea ManByron Howard
Director
1 film together · 7.8 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
TangledPeter Browngardt
Director
1 film together · 7.6 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
The Day the Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes MovieFrancisco Ruiz Velasco
Director
1 film together · 7.6 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Trollhunters: Rise of the TitansPeter Hastings
Director
1 film together · 7.4 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Dog ManJohn Lasseter
Director
1 film together · 7.2 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
CarsTerry Gilliam
Director
1 film together · 7.2 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Fear and Loathing in Las VegasGarth Jennings
Director
1 film together · 7.1 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
SingMichael Chang
Director
1 film together · 6.9 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Superman vs. The EliteCarlos Saldanha
Director
1 film together · 6.9 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Ice Age: The MeltdownMorgan Neville
Director
1 film together · 6.8 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
LorneDarrell Van Citters
Director
1 film together · 6.8 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Tom and Jerry: Snowman's LandPhil Lord
Director
1 film together · 6.8 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Cloudy with a Chance of MeatballsPierre Coffin
Director
1 film together · 6.7 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Minions & MonstersBrendon Small
Director
1 film together · 6.6 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Metalocalypse: Army of the DoomstarStéphane Benhamou
Director
1 film together · 6.3 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Fantastic Mr. MurrayJohn A. Davis
Director
1 film together · 6.1 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Jimmy Neutron: Boy GeniusSteve Oedekerk
Director
1 film together · 6.0 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
BarnyardJames Bridges
Director
1 film together · 5.6 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
PerfectKevin Pollak
Director
1 film together · 5.4 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
The Late BloomerBrent Hodge
Director
1 film together · 0.0 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Downey Wrote ThatSix degrees
Follow the thread outward — director, film, co-star, and the film after that.
Categories of our own
Six editorial categories we apply to every performer we cover.
Most rewatchable
WALL·E
as Additional Voices (voice)
The one that survives a fourth viewing. Nothing in the performance depends on surprise, which is why it keeps paying out.
Most emotional performance
Tangled
as Additional Voices (voice)
Grief played at conversational volume. The film never asks the audience to cry; the performance simply makes it difficult not to.
Most influential performance
WALL·E
as Additional Voices (voice)
You can hear this reading in other actors' auditions a decade later — the surest measure of influence there is.
Best ensemble performance
Jim Henson Idea Man
as Self (archive footage)
Work that makes everyone else in the frame better without ever pulling the camera towards itself.
Career defining performance
WALL·E
as Additional Voices (voice)
If the career had to be argued in a single scene, our editors would pick one from this film and rest the case.
In their films' words
“You can build a whole film around a performer who knows when not to speak. Laraine Newman has known it for a long time.”
Head to head
Put two careers on the same scale and see where the argument actually sits.
Ours alone
Recognitions handed out by this desk, on criteria no awards body uses.
Career Achievement
Awarded
41 years of relevant work — not merely a long career, but a long career of choices.
Modern Classic Performer
Awarded
Defining performances delivered inside the last twenty-five years, in films already being taught rather than merely remembered.
Family Legend
Awarded
40 catalogue titles in family, each one a reference point for the films that followed.
Our desk
Best ending, best opening, best twist and the rest — categories we apply to everyone we cover.
Best ending
The Super Mario Galaxy Movie
as Additional Voices (voice)
The last five minutes reorganise everything before them, and hold up when you already know what's coming.
Best opening
The Sheep Detectives
as Fainting Sheep (voice)
A first sequence that states the rules of the film without explaining a single one of them.
Most emotional
Perfect
as Linda
The film where the technique steps aside and lets the feeling arrive undefended.
Best twist
The Sheep Detectives
as Fainting Sheep (voice)
A reversal earned by information the film gave you and trusted you to misread.
Best visual achievement
Trollhunters: Rise of the Titans
as Ms. Janeth (voice)
Images that would survive with the sound switched off.
Best action sequence
Dog Man
as Scientist (voice)
Geography, stakes and consequence held in the same frame — spectacle you can follow.
Best dialogue
Inside Out
as Additional Voices (voice)
Lines written to be spoken, staged so the pauses do half the work.
Most underrated film
Minions & Monsters
as Additional Voices (voice)
The public vote sits below ours on this one, and the direction is the reason for the gap.
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Have your say
Community
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