Even though it has been over two decades, the 1999 film Tarzan still resonates with viewers who grew up watching the adventures of our jungle boy in a beautifully animated story.
While almost every viewer loves Tarzan for his seamless adventures and love for the forest and his friends, fans also adore Terk.
Nonetheless, many have questions about whether Terk is a boy or girl and who the fan-favorite character is voiced by.
Terk from Tarzan is voiced by Rosie O’Donnell, known for playing Rita Hendricks in The Fosters. Furthermore, Terk is a female gorilla who was initially written as a male but was changed due to O’Donell’s impressive voice during the auditions.
Tarzan: Who Voiced Terk in the 1999 Film?
Tarzan, released in 1999, is one of the most popular animated films of the 2000s, mainly due to Walt Disney’s beautiful animation and the story that brought a realistic approach to the characters’ nature.
In that sense, Terk was a great addition as he’s not only a smart gorilla but also a kind and caring animal who forged a close bond with the protagonist, Tarzan.
Furthermore, this fun-loving gorilla is closely related to Kerchak and Kala, who adopted Tarzan, making him Terk’s adoptive cousin.
Terk was voiced by Rosie O’Donnell in the 1999 film, and if you’re unfamiliar with the actress’ works, she also voiced Townie in American Dad and Octopus Masseuse in The Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas.
However, in the following animation films related to the franchise, she didn’t come back to voice Terk, perhaps due to the stories being completely different.
In the 2002 film Tarzan & Jane, Terk was voiced by April Winchell (Dalmatians: The Series), while Brenda Gate (Providence) voiced Terk in Tarzan 2: The Legend Begins (2005).
There were also a couple of video games following the film’s success, which were released in 1999 and 2001. In both of these games, Tarzan and Tarzan Untamed, Terk was voiced by Audrey Wasilewski (Spidey and His Amazing Friends).
Is Terk a Male or Female in Tarzan?
Terk was a male gorilla in the original novel series, Tarzan of the Apes, by Edgar Rice Burroughs, so fans would expect it to be the same in the film, given it is a faithful adaptation.
However, Terk is a female gorilla in Tarzan with a tomboyish personality, making her an interesting character as Tarzan’s best friend.
Interestingly enough, Terk was initially chosen to be a male gorilla so that fans of novels wouldn’t find it confusing, but during the auditions, the creators were impressed by Rose O’Donnell’s voice.
So, they opted to write Terk as a female character by making a few changes to the script, and that worked wonders as Terk garnered the affection of both male and female viewers since the film’s debut.
Terk also changed drastically in terms of a character in the film compared to the original book series because it wasn’t sympathetic in the novel but was killed by Tarzan after kidnapping Jane.
What are your thoughts on the 1999 film Tarzan? Have you watched it yet? Who are your favorite characters from the film apart from Terk and Tarzan?
