Captain Price's Actor 'Pushed' For Scouse Representation In Modern Warfare
The iconic hoarse Captain Price could have sounded a lot different, but apparently the actor pushed for him to be Scouse in Modern Warfare.
24th Oct 2022 16:13
Infinity Ward
Captain Price's Actor 'Pushed' For Scouse Representation In Modern Warfare
The iconic hoarse Captain Price could have sounded a lot different, but apparently the actor pushed for him to be Scouse in Modern Warfare.
24th Oct 2022 16:13
Infinity Ward
Captain John Price has become the staple of Call of Duty, eclipsing any other icon that the franchise has tried to produce and standing alone as the most bad-ass character in the game. However, he could have been a lot different, and that famous croak of a cigar-tanned and scotch-drinking northerner could have been replaced by the eeeeee of a scouser.
Price has returned in the rebooted Modern Warfare franchise with a different voice actor than the original series; Barry Sloane has taken the reigns in Modern Warfare 2019 and the newly released MW2, succeeding Billy Murray, whose voice left Price's lips from 2007 to 2012.
But with the scope to reimagine the Cap'n in a new light with the rebooted timeline, Barry Sloane has revealed his original intention was to make him a Liverpudlian.
Captain Price's Voice Actor Auditioned In Scouse
After praising his predecessor Murray, claiming that he did "an incredible performance," with Price in the OG series, Sloane contemplated many ideas on how to move Price on.
"I was the first actor with the opportunity to move him – physically embody that, and make it a 3D, modern version. I was excited, and I paid homage to him, I tried to add elements of his performance and choices, certainly in the tone," he told NME.
"In the auditions, I played him Scouse," Sloane added, before revealing that it was soon scrapped by Infinity Ward for the version we saw in 2019 and this week's Modern Warfare 2 campaign release.
Captain Price's Actor Wants More Scouse Heroes
Although the idea quickly became mission aborted, Sloane "really pushed" for the dialect and accent to come to fruition, claiming that there is a real lack of scousers playing hero roles. "I was really pushing it because we don’t have enough Scouse superheroes in my opinion," he said.
Sloane elaborated on Price's stature and influence as a superhero figure in the media by saying, "If you’re an actor, people will say 'Oh, are you in anything I know?'. There are loads of things you can say, and they'll go 'I don’t know it', but if you say 'I do Call Of Duty', they go 'You do Call Of Duty?!’'. It's instantly recognisable. It's like saying you do Superman or Batman."
Sloane got his own way in some respects though, making Price somewhat more "working class" than the esteemed depiction of the Call of Duty hero seen in previous games. It is a shame that we don't hear Price whip out some classic scouse dialect and sayings, but his croak has since become iconic and resonates with Modern Warfare fanatics.
About The Author
Jack Marsh
Jack is an Esports Journalist at GGRecon. Graduating from the University of Chester, with a BA Honours degree in Journalism, Jack is an avid esports enthusiast and specialises in Rocket League, Call of Duty, VALORANT, and trending gaming news.
