Lance Storm On Getting To Show His Comedic Side On Canada's Animated Hit "Corner Gas"
The Wrestling Inc. Daily recently welcomed former WWE Intercontinental Champion Lance Storm on a recent episode of the podcast where he and Wrestling Inc. Managing Editor Nick Hausman discussed Storm's current role as a voice actor on the hit Canadian animated series "Corner Gas". Storm talked about getting the opportunity to show a different side of himself as Lance Fury on the show.
"When I was sent the script, I think they were wondering whether I'd be cool with it," Storm recalled. "It's like, of course I would be. It's an animated comedy series. It's whatever you want it to be. They were all really cool. Even the media stuff, I had to approve the graphic of my character, and I got to approve the promotional–I just want to be on the show."
Storm's character is a retired pro wrestler that does a gardening podcast. Storm pointed out that it's not so dissimilar to who he is now though he does not podcast about gardening. He talked about the dynamics of his character that he discussed with show creator Brent Butt.
"It's funny because I am, for the most part, a retired pro wrestler that's a podcaster now, but I don't cover gardening, and I don't even like using the word, but when they deal with celebrities, some people might be a little more protective of their their image," Storm noted. "I don't think Brent would because I've met him, and I know him a little bit, but here when you see 'if I can be serious for a minute' Lance Storm that never smiles, you don't know how seriously he takes himself and whether he's going to appreciate some of the the light-hearted fancy Lance comments in the show."
Storm is not typically known for his comedic side during his decades in the wrestling business. He commented on the opportunity to show his comedic side to fans through "Corner Gas".
"I really enjoy it, but it's funny in that Lance Fury is still very much a serious guy that's about what he wants to do. It's just the situation is funny, and I think if it wasn't for the 'if I can be serious for a moment' Lance Storm, I don't know if Lance Fury the gardening enthusiast is as funny," Storm explained. "And I think that's the the brilliance of the writing is that the character, while being very much me, is completely not me."
Storm admitted that he is a fan of the series and had tried to be a part of the show's universe in some type of way. He also admitted that he would have been happy with just a cameo, but the show's upcoming episode will feature him in a starring role where he will take on Bret Hart for the first time ever.
"It was a lot of fun because I discovered the show, the live series if you will, has sort of been dubbed the Canadian 'Seinfeld', except they're in a small town in Saskatchewan doing nothing rather than being in New York City, but it's very much like 'Seinfeld' in that it is all about the characters," Storm noted. "If it wasn't for such great characters, it's like, okay, it's small-town Saskatchewan. They're not doing that much, but they're just such great characters and really good writing. So I think the show was about two seasons in when I discovered it.
"I got season 1 on DVD for Christmas and was just hooked, and I actually had a buddy of mine who works in film trying to get to the right people to suggest me for a cameo in the live series because they had quite a few cameos in it. And the show wrapped up before it would come to fruition, and then I ended up–I think I went to a stand-up show in Red Deer Alberta and met Brent. He is a wrestling fan. So we sort of connected on Twitter first, and I had kind of hoped that I might be able to finagle my way into a cameo in the 'Corner Gas The Movie.' It never came about, so then when they reached out and asked if I was interested in the animated series, it was like, 'yes, finally my chance,' and I was going to be extremely happy if I was just a cameo.
"And as it turns out, 'Sound and Fury', the name of the episode, the episode is about me. It's not just a cameo. I'm actually a big part of it. So I'm really excited, and if I don't have enough Canadian wrestling star power for you, Bret Hart is also in it. You'll get to see Lance Storm and Bret Hart wrestle for the first time ever as well as an audio cameo by Trish Stratus."
Hausman asked Storm if voice acting and stunt work would be an endeavor he wished to pursue more in the future. Storm said it would be something he would be open to as he talked about the experience he has so far.
"It's certainly something I'd be open to. I'm not actively pursuing it," Storm admitted. "To be honest, there's a stunt coordinator here, I don't know if he's based in Albert or B.C., but he's a wrestling fan, and there was a movie project 'Painkillers.' You've probably not heard of it at all. If you did, it's probably the wrong film you're thinking of, but they needed a couple of big people.
"So when you're in Alberta and you need a couple of big people for some parts, you think, 'well, what about the wrestlers out here?' And someone just suggested that I go down and read, and he was a wrestling fan and needed a guy for a bit of a fight scene and I got the gig. He was a stunt coordinator on two other television shows, and he gave me a call and said, 'do you want to come down to read for it?' I'm like, sure, and assuming I do a good enough job and I'm easy to work with, I've done pretty much every film or TV series I've been in.
"I'm the guy that gets in a fight and gets beat up and loses, but it's been a lot of fun. I did 'Damnation', which is a USA Netflix show, and I was in season one of 'Wynonna Earp', which is a really unique sci-fi series. So it was a lot of fun. Also did, this wasn't through the same guy, 'Chokeslam' the movie which we filmed in Saskatchewan."
Lance Storm voices Lance Fury as part of Canada's hit animated series Corner Gas on the upcoming episode "Sound And Fury". The episode debuts tonight, October 26th on CTV Comedy Channel in Canada. The episode will air in the US at a future date that is TBA.
Lance's full interview aired as part of a recent episode of our podcast, The Wrestling Inc. Daily. Subscribe to get the latest episodes as soon as it's released Monday – Friday afternoon by clicking here.