Paul Haddad
{{Short description|Canadian actor (1963–2020)}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Paul Haddad
| image = Paul Haddad.jpg
| alt =
| caption =
| birth_name =
| birth_date = {{birth date|1963|5|20}}
| birth_place = Birmingham, England, UK
| death_date = {{death date and age|2020|4|11|1963|5|20}}
| death_place = Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| education = McGill University
| nationality = Canadian
| occupation = Actor
| years_active = 1986–2009, 2019
}}
Paul Haddad (May 20, 1963 – April 11, 2020) was a Canadian actor. He was the original voice actor of Leon S. Kennedy in the Resident Evil franchise, voicing the character in Resident Evil 2 (1998). Other voice over roles included Uncle Arthur on Babar (1989–1991), Quicksilver and Arkon on X-Men (1992–1996), Luke Talbot on Monster Force (1994), the title character on Free Willy (1994–1995), and Lefty on John Callahan's Quads! (2000–2002).
Early life
Haddad was born in Birmingham, England on May 20, 1963. He was the eldest of three children. Haddad attended McGill University, where he studied acting. In 1988, he graduated from the National Theatre School of Canada, in Montreal, Quebec.
Career
Haddad performed in the Stratford Theatre Festival in Stratford, Ontario for two years.{{cite web |title=Paul Haddad |url=https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0352664/ |website=IMDB |accessdate=April 10, 2020}} In the 1996 festival, he played Bassanio in The Merchant of Venice.{{cite journal |last1=Newell |first1=Alex |title=The Stratford, Ontario, Festival 1996: A Canadian's Overview |journal=Shakespeare Bulletin |date=Winter 1997 |volume=15 |issue=1 |page=23 |jstor=26352743 }}
Haddad voiced Uncle Arthur on Babar (1989–1991) and Shrimplips on Medabots (2001–2002).
Haddad's voice roles include Quads, Mythic Warriors, Cyberchase, The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3, Super Mario World, Little Bear, The Magic School Bus, RoboRoach, Pearlie, Franny's Feet, The Adventures of Tintin and Rupert.
In 1995, Haddad played Gerald Schulze, Edward Schulze's (Matt Frewer) brother who runs the local market in the DisneyToon Studios animated comedy film BugHunt.
He voiced Willy Stop in the animated series Rescue Heroes.
Haddad was best known for voicing Leon S. Kennedy in the video game Resident Evil 2. Due to the popularity of his voice work in Resident Evil 2, Haddad was asked to voice a character in the similarly themed Daymare: 1998.{{cite web |title=DAYMARE: 1998 – Paul Haddad has something to say |author=Destructive Creations |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yTxoY2B_JXQ |website=YouTube |date=18 January 2019 |accessdate=April 11, 2020}} Haddad's role in Resident Evil 2 led to him becoming an "icon" among the game's fanbase according to Gamasutra.{{cite web|url=https://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/361421/Obituary_Resident_Evil_2_voice_actor_Paul_Haddad_has_passed_away.php|title=Obituary: Resident Evil 2 voice actor Paul Haddad has passed away|website=Gamasutra|last1=Kerr|first1=Chris|date=April 17, 2020|accessdate=April 9, 2021}}
Personal life and death
Haddad resided in Toronto, Ontario until his death. His hobbies included film editing (often with videos of his dog) and assisting with actor demos. He revealed during a YouTube livestream he had stage three throat cancer and had a tumor growing on one of his vocal cords; however, the tumor was surgically removed, altering his voice in the process.
In February 2020, Haddad set up a GoFundMe requesting $2,000 for his third neurosurgery. He detailed his personal and financial struggles in a complementing Facebook post, which revealed he had obsessive–compulsive disorder (OCD) for most of his life. Although Haddad had been managing the disorder through a deep brain stimulation (DBS) device, the device was removed in 2019 due to an infection, causing his battle with OCD to resume.{{cite web |last1=Keegan |first1=October |title=Original Leon Voice Performer Paul Haddad Passes Away At 56 |url=https://www.relyonhorror.com/latest-news/original-leon-voice-performer-paul-haddad-passes-away-at-56/ |website=Rely on Horror |access-date=22 January 2021 |date=17 April 2020}}
Two months after creating the fundraiser, Haddad died on April 11, 2020, at the age of 56. The cause of death was not publicly disclosed.{{cite web |title=Paul Haddad Obituary |url=https://www.legacy.com/obituaries/thestar/obituary.aspx?n=paul-haddad&pid=196002795 |website=thestar.com |accessdate=April 18, 2020}}
Filmography
=Film=
| class="wikitable sortable" |
| Year
!Title !Role ! scope="col" class="unsortable" | Notes |
|---|
| 1987
| Lover | |
| 1995
| BugHunt | Gerald Schulze (voice) | |
| 1996
| An Angel for Christmas | Additional Voices (voice) | Direct-to-video |
| 1999
| Babar: King of the Elephants | |
| 2000
| Franklin and the Green Knight: The Movie | Direct-to-video |
| 2002
| Rolie Polie Olie: The Great Defender of Fun | Direct-to-video |
| 2003
| Back to School with Franklin | Mr. Fox (voice) | Direct-to-video |
| 2003
| Rolie Polie Olie: The Baby Bot Chase | Gloomius Maximus, Wally Jolly (voices) | Direct-to-video |
| 2004
| Wedge Executive | |
=Television=
| class="wikitable sortable" |
| Year
!Title !Role ! scope="col" class="unsortable" | Notes |
|---|
| 1986
| Julian Tobias | Episode: "Fighting Back" |
| 1987
| The Triumphant Egghead | Episode: "The Prodigious Hickey" |
| 1989–1991
| Babar | Uncle Arthur (voice) | 39 episodes |
| 1990
| data-sort-value="Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3, The" | The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3 | Additional Voices (voice) | 26 episodes |
| 1991
| MacGyver | Nikolai Rostov | Episode: "Jerico Games" |
| 1992–1996
| X-Men | Quicksilver/Pietro Maximoff, Arkon, Kiyoek, Various (voices) | 17 episodes |
| 1993
| E.N.G. | Roger Quigley | Episode: "Love and Marriage" |
| 1994
| 21 episodes |
| 1996
| John Miller | TV film |
| 1998–2000
| Buford, Mr. Needlenose (voices) | 26 episodes |
| 1999
| Episode: "Theseus and the Minotaur" |
| 2000–2002
|Lefty (voice) |26 episodes |
| 2001–2002
| Medabots | Shrimplips, Calamari, Various (voices) | Seasons: 1–2 |
| 2001–2002
| Willy Stop (voice) | Episodes: "Mayhem in the Mist" and "Blackout" |
| 2002–2004
| Gloomius Maximus (voice) | Season 6 only |
| 2004–2010
| Additional Voices (voice) | 11 episodes |
| 2009
| Morris Bailey | Episode: "Snakes and Ladders" |
=Video games=
| class="wikitable sortable" |
| Year
!Title !Role ! scope="col" class="unsortable" | Notes |
|---|
| 1998
| |
| 2019
| Final role |
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- {{IMDb name|0352664}}
- {{anime News Network|people|4004}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Haddad, Paul}}
Category:Canadian male film actors
Category:Canadian male television actors
Category:Canadian male video game actors
Category:Canadian male voice actors
Category:Canadian people of Lebanese descent
Category:English emigrants to Canada
Category:Male actors from Birmingham, West Midlands
Category:Male actors from Toronto