Netflix released one of its most compelling shows of 2019 over the weekend with Unbelievable. One of the show’s narratives involves two detectives who bully a young girl into believing she was not raped by a sick person.
One of these detectives is Pruitt, expertly portrayed by Bill Fagerbakke and ever since Netflix viewers have been asking: Why does this actor sound so familiar?
Well, Fagerbakke is quite famous for playing one of television’s most famous animated characters. And it might surprise fans which one it is.
Here is everything to know about Bill Fagerbakke from Netflix’s Unbelievable.
Who is Bill Fagerbakke from Netflix’s Unbelievable?
What do Spongebob Squarepants and Unbelievable have in common? They both star Bill Fagerbakke!
Fagerbakke is the voice of everyone’s favorite moronic Patrick Star and he has been voicing the character for the better part of two decades. It’s hard to believe given Fagerbakke’s role of detective Pruitt is so unlikeable but that’s just a testament to his unrecognized ability as a performer.
Recently, Fagerbakke spoke to Den of Geek in July 2019, and he opens up about how much he loves playing the lovable starfish saying:
“What a ride it is. I love every day. I love every session and your generation, you know, it feels like 80% of a person under 30, I can just say, “No, this is Patrick.” And you start laughing or smiling… It’s really an amazing scenario and I love it and I love Patrick. He makes me laugh and I feel that Patrick is linked in a real personal way to me as a seven year old, you know?”
Fagerbakke actually has quite the impressive career of doing voice acting which according to IMDB includes such titles like Aaahh!!! Real Monsters, Batman Beyond, Batman: The Brave and Bold, the Disney television series of Hercules, and so much more.
But far above all these animated programs is the fact he played Broadway in the animated series Gargoyles–which was a show that was way ahead of its time. Broadway was one of the more soft-spoken gargoyles among the heroic creatures and he did a stellar job voicing the role.
You can check out a rare clip of the character and how he sounded in the show below.
More about Bill Fagerbakke from Unbelievable
Beyond just being an animated superstar Fagerbakke has a nice background in small roles for film and television. The recent series with high awareness was How I Met Your Mother where he played Jason Segel’s father, Marvin Sr.
He also had a recurring role in the sitcom Coach as Michael “Dauber” Dybinski, which had an extensive run throughout the 90s. Not to mention, he had appearances on critically acclaimed cable shows such as HBO’s Oz as well as Showtime’s Weeds.
While his extensive career in entertainment is extremely impressive, the most fascinating part is where he started. He originally wanted to pursue football and played as a defensive lineman in college for the Idaho Vandals before pursuing his career in theater. Needless to say, it paid off because now he’s one of the most beloved animated characters today, as well as a star in one of the best Netflix shows of the year.
His role as Detective Pruitt marks a high point for an actor who has been working since the 80s. Fagerbakke is unlike his usual characters. especially the extremely intimidating officer who is negligible for a young woman not coming to terms with her own trauma in Unbelievable. And while he may be a small piece of the series, his presence is larger than life.
Unbelievable is now streaming on Netflix.