Venture Bros. Patrick Warburton Still Remembers What Sold Him On The Series
The mention of Brock Samson (Patrick Warburton) from Adult Swim's "The Venture Bros." invokes fear in almost everybody, regardless if they are a hero or villain. That's because Brock has somewhat of a well-earned reputation as a deadly and skilled combatant that cannot be stopped. Although Brock has quite a few powerful connections to secretive organizations, he spends most of his time protecting the titular family unless he is running special missions for his old mentor and the Office of Secret Intelligence. Playing such a character must be a treat, considering how everybody reacts to him and the outrageous displays of machismo and rage that Brock sometimes unleashes when provoked.
During an interview with Paste Magazine, Warburton was asked what the pitch was to join the cast of "The Venture Bros." and how the showrunners explained the character. Warburton answered, "Oh yeah, when I saw who Brock was, I was sold immediately. I loved the concept of the show immediately; I think they described it like 'Johnny Quest' on acid. And that was all it took to get me on board. Throughout the years, they've done such an incredible job keeping it engaging and fun, building on its mythos and satire and everything."
Warburton had no idea how much fun The Venture Bros. was going to be
In that same interview, Patrick Warburton also explained how he came to be a part of "Venture Bros." According to the actor, the role came at an opportune time due to a previous series of his getting cancelled. "You know what's funny, when I did 'The Tick,' that show meant so much to me. It was such a tremendous opportunity. And when 'Venture Bros.' came along, it was like a year after that, after we'd all had our hearts broken by Fox, not getting a fair shot with 'The Tick.' And when Chris McCulloch pitched 'Venture Bros.' to me, I remember just thinking really casually 'oh sure, I guess I'll do it.' Little did I know how much f****** fun it was going to be, and what a supergenius creative venture it was on his part."
Appearing in 71 episodes and "The Venture Bros." movie, Brock Samson is easily one of the most recognizable characters in the franchise, mainly for his distinct look, his facial twitch that happens whenever he is enraged, and his love of vintage '70s items and memorabilia like the band Led Zeppelin and his iconic muscle car. Besides his beloved style, Brock often creates intense action scenes, like when he decides to bull rush legions of henchman that are almost entirely powerless to stop his relentless assault.
Perhaps some of the fun Warburton was talking about is from scenes like when Brock puts Edgar Allan Poe into a headlock, which is one of the character's childhood dreams. Either way, it seems as if Warburton knew exactly what he was getting into when he signed up for "The Venture Bros.," but he didn't understand the depth of how entertaining the role would be.