Teen Titans Go! & DC Super Hero Girls: Missi Pyle Embraces Her Villainous Side

To present a worthy challenge to superhero teams as established as the Teen Titans and the DC Super Hero Girls, it takes a truly epic supervillain. Voiced by Missi Pyle, Cynthonnia is twisted and dangerous enough to require the two teams to join forces. The movie Teen Titans Go! & DC Super Hero Girls: Mayhem in the Multiverse has the demigod emerge in a bid to conquer two universes by manipulating the Legion of Doom before eventually taking matters into her own hands. Facing an enemy as powerful as Cynthonnia, even the combined might of the Titans and Super Hero Girls may not be enough to stop her.

In an exclusive interview with CBR, Pyle shared the joys of getting to embrace her villainous side in her performance, explained the nuance involved in taking on voice acting roles, and reflected on some of her fan-favorite antagonistic characters.

CBR: Missi, this is your first time playing a super-powered supervillain (Y: The Last Man, notwithstanding). How was it taking on the role of Cynthonnia?

Missi Pyle: I'm a huge fan of playing a villain, I feel that we can all relate to a villain; we [all have] that in us, and they just act on it, and they would love to be a hero if they could. [laughs] I think there's a level of complexity in a villain that is so much fun to play. I was so excited when this came along, it's kind of all I want to do, to play complicated villains.

How did you find the character's voice?

When I read the scripts, especially if it's something that I can feel, I could tell who [Cynthonnia] is. The other thing that's really cool about her is that she isn't a character that people aren't that familiar with, where you would have an idea of how to play her. We could just play, and I think there's that part of you that always feels so beaten down, that's what makes [Cynthonnia] so angry, that controlled rage that's really fun to play. It came out naturally.

How was it working with voice director Gene Vassilaros and keeping the energy up for such a wacky movie?

It was nothing but fun. There [were] only ever a [few times] to bring it down a little bit because I wasn't really able to play with the other actors that much. I did most of it by myself. That's something I did miss, other than live-action, not being able to always work with the other actors but just playing with what they give you. If you're lucky, [your co-stars] have already recorded, but you're definitely in a vacuum. I had an acting teacher who said that if you're getting into character, imagine you're making a piece of clothing. You always want to have more fabric so that you can cut away if you need to, rather than not have enough fabric because you can't stretch it. I always bring too much and let them trim it down. [laughs]

You may be the only actor I've spoken to who has had voiceover roles and a silent movie role in The Artist. How is it navigating something where you rely on your voice as an actor and something where you rely on a nonverbal performance?

What's interesting about The Artist, I remember when I went into my audition and met with director Michel Hazanavicius, nobody had any idea how it would go. He's even said in interviews that he would hand the cast a DVD; he had no idea it would become an Oscar-winning film. When I auditioned, I started doing a scene, and I was mouthing the words and not making any noise, and he was like, "Missi, you can speak, we're just not going to record it." [laughs] That was the thing, even though it was silent faces that you saw, we were actually speaking even though it was more about the physical.

What's fun about a role like this is that you don't have to worry about that. Whatever hang-ups I might have about the way I look or the way my body works, you don't have to think about that. You don't have to prepare your body and be limited by your body, so it's really fun and so much faster. You walk in and start working. When I'm filming something, from the time I get to set to the time I get in front of the camera to record a take, it's usually about three hours. [With a voiceover,] you work from an hour and a half to three hours, and then [you're] done.

Had you watched any Teen Titans Go! or DC Super Hero Girls to help prepare and figure out how your character fits into this world?

I had seen a little bit of the DC Super Hero Girls with my daughter, and [Warner Bros.] sent some to me, so I watched a little bit of it. This character literally exists in a vacuum, so she was someone we could just play with.

How was it taking on the role of Roxanne for Y: The Last Man?

That was probably the most fun I've ever had. When I read the script, I thought, "I like this woman a lot." I had no idea who she was, but once I found out she wasn't who she appeared to be... After this pandemic where everyone with a Y chromosome dies within a day and there's so much loss, she's the one person who gained everything. She can become whoever she wants. She was really good at that.

I feel like there is a sense of heart behind some of the villains you've played, like Fran in Dodgeball or the mom in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. How fulfilling is it for you, as an actor, to play those kinds of roles?

As an actor, I've always felt that I'm much more myself [in those kinds of roles] than I am in real life. [laughs] There's something about larger-than-life characters. It's easier for me to be truthful as those people. There's just something about going into them. The mother in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, what a villain she is, trying to steer her daughter in one particular way. We all have that side to us but very rarely do people present it so unapologetically. It's really fun to see those people. In Dodgeball, [my character] was a product of the incredible talent that she has and recruited onto this evil team. She's such a common villain.

Missi, now that you've joined the world of DC Super Hero Girls, would you be open to returning in more of a hero role or to further embrace your dark side?

I would love to play a hero! I don't think I would be any good at it, but I'd do it! I'd absolutely love to just continue to play a villain. The older I get, the more the world starts to open up into slightly different places and a little less of the roles I used to play, so maybe there are some interesting things right around the corner. The world of film, television, and animation is exploding right now.

Directed by Matt Peters and Katie Rice, Teen Titans Go! & DC Super Hero Girls: Mayhem in the Multiverse is available now on Blu-ray, DVD, and digital HD.