Samuel E. Wright
Age: 78
Birthplace: Camden, South Carolina, United States
Samuel E. Wright (born November 20, 1946) is an American film and theatre actor, voice actor and singer who is best known as the voice of Sebastian in Disney's The Little Mermaid, for which he provided the main vocals to "Under the Sea", which won the Academy Award for Best Original Song. Wright also played the part of Mufasa in the original cast of The Lion King on Broadway and voiced Kron the Iguanodon in Disney's CGI film Dinosaur.
Career
Wright was nominated for a Tony Award in 1984 for Best Featured Actor in a Musical for his performance in The Tap Dance Kid and again in 1998 for Best Featured Actor in a Musical as the original lead actor for Mufasa in The Lion King, the Broadway version of Disney's animated classic of the same name. Wright played Enos' partner Turk in the TV series Enos and originated the part of "Sam" in Over Here! on Broadway. He also played the part of Jericho on the short-lived Fox TV show Jonny Zero.
Filmography
- Enos (TV series) (1980-1981) as Officer Turk Adams
- The Little Mermaid (1989) as Sebastian the crab
- The Little Mermaid (TV series) (1992-94) as Sebastian
- Raw Toonage (1992) as Sebastian
- Marsupilami (1993 TV series) (1993) as Sebastian
- Dinosaur (2000) as Kron the Iguanodon
- The Little Mermaid II: Return to the Sea (2000) as Sebastian
- Disney's House of Mouse (2001-03) as Sebastian
- The Little Mermaid: Ariel's Beginning (2008) as Sebastian
Music
Wright has performed and recorded several songs for the Walt Disney animated film The Little Mermaid, as Sebastian the Crab, and is most known for the songs "Under the Sea", and "Kiss the Girl". He released a soul music record in 1973, "There's Something Funny Going On" b/w "Three Hundred Pounds of Hungry" on the Paramount label.