In 1986, Howard the Duck hit theaters as one of George Lucas's most ambitious bets. Critics trashed it, and audiences ignored it, turning it into a resounding failure. Years later, Lucas considered a special version where the duck would be a digital character with the voice of Robin Williams. The idea never materialized, but the duck had brief cameos in Marvel movies. A piece of entertainment trivia with no practical impact.
The technical plan for a digital duck with a legendary voice 🦆
Lucas's proposal involved replacing the animatronic suit and the actor inside the costume with a computer-generated model. At that time, digital technology for realistic characters was in its infancy, with limited examples in productions like The Abyss. Williams would bring his characteristic vocal register, but the high cost and technical limitations of the late eighties stalled the project. It remained a draft without concrete development.
The duck that almost talks like Genie, but without a lamp 🎭
Imagine Robin Williams lending his voice to a digital claymation space duck. It could have been the first experiment of an animated character with the actor's frenetic energy. But fate was wise: the public had already seen enough talking duck for a lifetime. In the end, Howard faded into obscurity, and Williams found better luck on a magic carpet. An anecdote no one asked for and that never happened.