Jack Black Regrets Turning Down Syndrome in The Incredibles

Jack Black has expressed deep regret over passing on the role of Syndrome, the villain in Pixar's 2004 animated film The Incredibles, a decision he attributes to his own demands during casting discussions.

In a recent interview with Capital FM while promoting his new film Anaconda alongside Paul Rudd, Black recounted how Pixar offered him the voice part early in production. At the time, the actor, fresh off the success of his 2003 live-action hit School of Rock, was unfamiliar with director Brad Bird, whose prior feature was the 1999 animated film The Iron Giant. Black felt the Syndrome character, an obsessive fan turned vengeful supervillain who eliminates superheroes with advanced technology, lacked depth. He requested script revisions to add more dimensions, but Bird declined.

"I was offered, and I do regret saying no. I was offered Syndrome in that fantastic movie The Incredibles, one of my favorites of all time, by the way," Black said. He recalled his pitch to Bird: "This character that you're offering me is a villain, but he's kind of one-dimensional. I'm interested, but I'd like to see a rewrite. Will you add some dimensions to this character?" According to Black, Bird's...