Josh Robert Thompson

Josh Robert Thompson (born March 11, 1975) is an American actor. He is best known for his work on The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson, providing the voice of robot skeleton and Craig Ferguson's sidekick Geoff Peterson along with numerous characters and impersonations, as well as his celebrity impersonations on Family Guy, The Howard Stern Show and Red Letter Media's Best of the Worst.

Thompson performs voice impressions of Morgan Freeman, Robert De Niro, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Matthew McConaughey, George Lucas, and Donald Trump. In The Kelly Clarkson Show, he currently serves as game announcer "God", using his Morgan Freeman impression. He has also performed as a stand-up comedian, often touring alongside Ferguson. His live-action projects include a lead role in the romantic comedy Nowhere Girl (2014), as well as a crowdfunded pilot episode called The Josh Robert Thompson Show.

Early life Thompson was born on March 11, 1975. He grew up in Cleveland, Ohio, "raised by classic television". He would watch as actors became different characters and began to mimic them. At age eight, his grandmother bought him a Fisher-Price tape recorder that he used to create radio-style "shows", voicing the host and the guests. The following year, he performed on stage in Peter Pan at the Cleveland Play House.

Career Radio appearances Thompson's Arnold Schwarzenegger impression first gained national attention during the 2003 California gubernatorial recall election. Posing as Schwarzenegger, Thompson phoned in to Fox News Channel's morning program, Fox & Friends, fooling the hosts into believing (at least for a short while) that he was, in fact, Schwarzenegger.

Thompson's Fox News prank caught the attention of The Howard Stern Show, and the impression—dubbed "Fake Arnold" by the show's producers—soon became a mainstay on the program. Ten days later, after learning that the entire moon destruction scenario was a hoax, Scarborough apologized on-air for his erroneous comments. On May 16, 2011, Thompson performed Geoff as a show guest; in a later skit spoofing the show's opening broadcast, Thompson portrayed Peterson as a living sidekick who suggested that Ferguson could reanimate his skeleton should something befall him while skydiving. Beginning June 29, 2011, Thompson voiced and performed Geoff live for nearly every episode, both in-studio and in such locations as Paris, France.

Once Thompson began voicing Geoff Peterson live, he incorporated several of his own impressions into the character's repertoire. He has performed his Morgan Freeman impression for Freeman during the actor's appearances. In June 2011, Geoff asked Freeman: "Would you like to hear my Morgan Freeman voice?" and: "What would you like to say to yourself?" Freeman gave the impression a thumbs-up and called it "outstanding".

In 2014, Thompson took over as the voice and operator of Sandra Peterson, the remote-controlled rhinoceros head that hangs over the fireplace. The character was originated by actress Dana DeLorenzo.

Craig Ferguson told Larry King Now in 2014 that he and Thompson would continue to work together after leaving The Late Late Show in December. In the interview, Ferguson called Thompson a "comedic genius".

Following the end of the program in 2014, Thompson returned to the show a year later, in March 2015, where he made his television stand-up debut, in the episode where fellow Ohio native Drew Carey served as guest host.

The Josh Robert Thompson Show Using his online presence in August 2015, Thompson created an Indiegogo campaign that would help fund the post production costs of his pilot episode. In three days, Thompson's online following helped successfully fund the post production costs raising $51,613 (US) passing its original $25,000 goal.

During post production, the audio mixing was completed at Skywalker Ranch, where Ben Burtt overlooked some of the process and found Thompson's George Lucas sketch funny. Ben Burtt later complimented Thompson saying that Lucas himself would love his show and his characters.

On April 9, 2018, Thompson uploaded his pilot to various social media platforms to help gain traction, including Twitter, Instagram, and Periscope.

Voice acting Since 2011, Thompson has voiced various characters on Family Guy, American Dad!, and Skylanders Academy. While voicing a few sketches on Jimmy Kimmel Live!, Thompson also appeared on The Cleveland Show from 2011 until its cancellation in 2013. He has been the announcer of the Writers Guild of America Awards since 2017.

Since 2019, Thompson has been voicing "God" with his Morgan Freeman impression on The Kelly Clarkson Show during the program's game segments.

On-screen projects Thompson began working on his first television series while still on The Late Late Show. The first installment, dubbed WJRT Television, starred Thompson alongside Dana DeLorenzo in a television news show parody. While some episodes were uploaded to Funny or Die, the series was not sold to a network.

In 2014, Thompson announced plans for an upcoming variety show, The Josh Robert Thompson Show. Its pilot episode was completed in 2015 through a crowdfunding campaign via Indiegogo.

Podcast Thompson has also embarked on various podcasts throughout his career including Darren Carter's "Pocket Party", and Brody Stevens' "Festival of Friendship". The most recent installment of his Joshin' Around podcast was picked up by iTunes in 2016, consisting of Thompson alone improvising all material.

Film Thompson has starred as narrator in Yogi Bear (2010) and Scary Movie 5 (2013), with on-camera appearances as lead character in the film Nowhere Girl (2014), and a supporting role as a priest in the film Revelator (2017). He was also featured in The Angry Birds Movie (2016), voicing two characters, and voiced a Construction Foreman in the film The Nut Job 2: Nutty by Nature (2017).

Other work In 2010, Thompson appeared in advertisements for More Than insurance, doing his Morgan Freeman impression. In the advertisement, Thompson's character is named More Than Freeman.

Web series In 2018, Thompson starred in a new web series called "F#cking 40", a series about becoming middle aged. Thompson stars alongside writer and director Bill Caco, Jeff Pride, and Justin Johnson. F#cking 40 won "Best Web Series" at the FirstGlance Film Festival in Philadelphia.

In 2025, Thompson made guest appearances on Red Letter Media’s Best of the Worst and re:View series.

Original characters Thompson's original creations include: televangelist the Rev. Apostle BG; gay cabaret singer Robin Sooper; Gary the Ogre; and Snorky Lopez, a Mexican raccoon.

Filmography Television

Film Year Title Role Notes 2008 Bigger, Stronger, Faster* Himself/Arnold Schwarzenegger 2010 Yogi Bear Narrator (voice) 2013 Scary Movie 5 Morgan Freeman (voice) 2014 The Bag Man Various (voice) Nowhere Girl Tyler 2016 The Angry Birds Movie Brad Bird, Dane the Saxophone Bird (voice) Revelator Father Levi 2017 The Nut Job 2: Nutty by Nature Construction Foreman, Additional Voices (voice)2021 Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar Morgan Freemond Paw Patrol: The Movie Technician (voice) 2023 Once Upon a Studio Grumpy (voice) Short film 2025 Captain America: Brave New World Announcer (voice; uncredited)

Video games Year Title Role Notes2006 Disney's Chicken Little: Ace in Action Sleazel Weazel (voice) Rise and Fall: Civilizations at War Alexander the Great, Emperor Octavian (voice)2008 Elements of Destruction Dr. Edgar Herbert (voice) Call of Duty: World at War U.S. Soldier (voice) WALL-E Human Male (voice) Bolt (voice)2009 Free Realms Goblin, Yeti, Dog, Additional characters (voice) Up Various dogs (voice) Brütal Legend Healer, Additional characters (voice) James Cameron's Avatar: The Game Various characters (voice) G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra General Hawk (voice)2010 Dead to Rights: Retribution Operator, Medic, Union, Security Guards (voice) Final Fantasy XIII Rygdea (voice) Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep Prince Phillip (voice) 2011 NCIS: The Video Game Leroy Jethro Gibbs (voice) 2013 Lego City Undercover Blue Whittaker, Albert Spindlerouter (voice) 2014 The Lego Movie Videogame Vitruvius (voice) Replacing Morgan Freeman 2017 Lego Dimensions Albert Spindlerouter (voice) 2020 Fallout 76: Wastelanders Batter, Frankie Beckett, Sage, Raiders, Settlers, Flight Recorder (voice)

Music Austrian Death Machine - Arnold Schwarzenegger (voice) on 2009 album Double Brutal

Web Movie Fights - Himself (Episode 108 - What Iconic Horror Villains Should Face Off in Their Own Movie?) Best of the Worst - Himself (Wheel of the Worst #29, #31 and #32; Terror Squad, Back from Hell, and Traxx; Junka #5)