Jacobs is a devout Catholic of Lebanese descent. Growing up, Jacobs originally intended to become an NBA player. Jacobs attended Bishop Gallagher High School in Harper Woods, Michigan where he started to become interested in acting after seeing a production of West Side Story, in which he attended the rehearsals. Jacobs would later act in school productions of Grease and The Wiz. He enrolled in Wayne State University where he was in the community theater and later transferred to the University of Arizona where he majored in musical theater. Jacobs was further inspired by his cousin who appeared on the original Broadway rendition of Les Misérables. He moved to Los Angeles where he initially did commercial voice overs as a side gig to his theatrical work. He started animation voice acting as a walla voice actor alongside James Arnold Taylor and Teresa Ganzel.[1][2]
In 1993, Jacobs originated the role of Chico Fernández in Jeff Daniels' comedy The Vast Difference at the Purple Rose Theatre.
In 1996–97, he won acting awards in Michigan, Florida and Wisconsin for his portrayal of Aram in Richard Kalinoski's "Beast on the Moon."
In 1999, Jacobs landed an uncredited voice role as Curt in Full Blast. He was also a background voice actor for Futurama. In the same year, he appeared in his first live-action role in Get the Hell Out of Hamtown.
Jacobs served as the producing artistic director of the Gem and Century Theatres in Detroit from 2000 to 2002.
Jacobs was a substitute for Baron Cohen as the voice of King Julien in The Penguins of Madagascar, again as an impression of Baron Cohen (Jacobs also provided additional voices in the series). In 2011, he won a Daytime Emmy Award for the role. Jacobs reprised his role in Merry Madagascar (2009) and Madly Madagascar (2013). In 2014–2017, he returned to the role in All Hail King Julien. In Penguins of Madagascar (2014), Jacobs once again reprised his role as King Julien. He had also done voice-overs in various commercials.
In addition to the jobs that led to All Hail King Julien, Jacobs had been doing voice-over work for animated television series, including Phineas and Ferb (in which he provided additional voices) and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (in which he voiced Snake / Snakeweed), as well as several video games. He had said that animation, much like the theatre, gives actors a chance to play a wide range of roles. He said, "I can play any character of any ethnicity, any age, even any gender. And that's a freedom the camera doesn't give you. It's an incredibly freeing thing."[4] He also stated that King Julien is his favorite voice role and would gladly reprise his role if ever asked.[citation needed] Jacobs had received more recognition as King Julien than the character's predecessor Baron Cohen. In Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted (2012), Jacobs provided the singing voice of King Julien for the soundtrack.
^ abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyzaaabacadaeafagahaiaj"Danny Jacobs (visual voices guide)". Behind The Voice Actors. Retrieved May 26, 2024. A green check mark indicates that a role has been confirmed using a screenshot (or collage of screenshots) of a title's list of voice actors and their respective characters found in its credits or other reliable sources of information.
^Ben 10: Ultimate Alien Season 2 Episode 27 closing credits
