Last of Us clicker actor Misty Lee reveals how the monsters click

Misty Lee, an improv comedian from Los Angeles, studied at Second City. She’s a magician at Hollywood’s Magic Castle who’s also trained in dentistry, and she’s the voice of Princess Leia in Star Wars Battlefront. But she’s also the voice of one of TV and games’ creepiest monsters — Last of Us’ clickers.

Lee is credited with the creation of the clicker’s click, a mixture of screeching and echolocation, alongside clicker voice actor and PlayStation Studios sound designers Phil Kovats and Derrick Espino. She and Kovats — sometimes with their clicking mixed together — provided the eerie sound for Last of UsIt was originally released in 2013, and Kovats was back for it. Part 2 of “The Last of Us”, but Lee wasn’t involved. HBO’s Last of UsShe was able to re-create the voice that she created, and brought her distinctive echolocation sounds to small screens. Lee gave Polygon a detailed interview about the origins of the clicker voice and how they changed for the show. She also shared some tips on clicking.

Frazer Harrison/Getty Images

[Ed. note: This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.]

Polygon: We value your contributions Last of Usand play the game.

Misty Lee They did, and I was a part of the creation. However, the sound director is me. Part 2 of “The Last of Us”They were a completely different team. They desired to move in a different direction. One thing I’ve learned in this industry is that you own nothing — I taught Phil [Kovats]They showed others how to create that sound. Then they showed others how to do it. The sound can be made by anyone. I’ll teach you how to make the sound.

It would be a great idea. I actually tried to do it before this call and it didn’t sound right at all.

You can’t print it, but I’ll teach you. [Ed. note: Sorry folks, industry secrets!]

What was the best way to get started with the first game you played?

One of them was helping me with a project. Phil and Derrick [Espino]These are the two men that were involved in the sound design. Phil Kovats (male clicker) and Derrick Espino (sound designer). They’re brilliant men whose hearts were left all over that game. Derrick was helping me with something, so I was creating a creature. And Derrick said, “Hmm, I’m going to bring you in on something else I’m doing.”

I was just starting, so I went to the booth. We’re looking for some sounds. These are some of the creatures in this game we’re working on. We don’t quite know what they sound like. This is what they’re going to look like, and this is what they do.

As a voice actor, it’s your job to leave everything on the floor. The experimentation began, and then I got to do stuff for them. They ran when they heard the clicking sound. Wait a minute. This is not right. Is it possible to change this? You can do it again and again. This is the sound we just heard.

You were also making creature sounds prior to this?

There were not many women back then. These days, there are many who raise animals in LA. But I didn’t know that it was a burgeoning market at the time. Ich was working with Derrick on a creature and he was great. A lady… That’s interesting. They are great noises!. You will find her doing things not usual.. I don’t mind getting ugly. I think it’s fun. You’ve got snot and water running down your face. Don’t wear makeup because you’re disgusting. You’re all over the microphone and I love to get gross. It’s fun. There really weren’t other people doing this at the time. It just wasn’t a thing. Because I don’t mind being disgusting, and my background was in improv, it just became a thing.

Phil and Derrick and the success and sound design of their original game are what helped me get on the stage. They have influenced a large part of my career. I mean, it’s always said we rise up to the opportunities that we’re ready for. I was given a chance by those guys. The game I was playing wasn’t clear to me. I didn’t know what I was doing. Just having fun with good people was what I was doing.

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Is it possible to make that sound so easily? Are you able to recall what you tried before you got there?

The first was acting. They told me to pretend I was carrying a backpack around my body. You can see what’s going on, but you can’t control it. The people you love are being ripped apart by your own actions. How does this sound to you? That was it. That’s where we started. That question is your answer. Answering that question makes it real. It starts to feel like that, and then it becomes real. Then you can see someone you truly love.

Imagine the anguish and pain. It started with weeping and screaming, and trying to stop my own hands from doing something that they’re not supposed to be doing, and also something that’s breaking my own heart. Then it started to change and we simply let it happen. It was three to four hours. They just hit the record button and then let go.

When they found something interesting, they would take notes and collaborate to jump in. That’s super cool. Is it possible to do this three times?

When you’re weeping and moaning and screaming and crying, and also being a monster — you’re in there being a monster — you’re adopting proclivities that are not quite human, that change your voiceprint. And what I mean by that is, for example, if you’re a dog, you don’t have a human skull, you’ve got a long nose. To make the desired shape you might turn your tongue sideways or change the position of your instrument. When you’re doing a creature, you’re going to want to try to look like them, to stand like them.

This is the beginning. Then, take a photograph of the clickers. They don’t have a voice — they’re not really a voiced character. Their voice box has been beaten, it’s been infected. It’s important to avoid anything too human-sounding, while remembering that once they were humans. We don’t want to remove humanity completely.

That was an amazing visual for someone to see. It’s such an amazing thing for an actor to feel. You’re tearing apart your family and you can’t stop it. What? Wow. That was such a powerful moment in my life. That was where we began. Then, we changed our shapes. Exhaled, screaming, weeping. Then we found it.

Are the recording techniques for recording the game and the recording of the program the same?

Yes. The video game was all blind creation — they had one artistic picture of the clickers. We recorded the picture for the show. And that’s really where knowing where the sound lives and being able to act comes in. When you’ve got a clicker walking, or just randomly looking for something —

[Lee does an inquisitive clicker sound.]

— like, Does it exist?Instead of:

[Lee does an alarmed, alert clicker sound.]

[which is]They find something. Now, the attack.

[Lee does an aggressive clicker sound.]

It is important to be able to tell the difference. There’s a scene where Ellie hadn’t seen clickers before, in the museum. That is what you should remember?

We started by picturing. It was clicker walking, going and the first thing that we did. [Lee does curious clicker sounds] and like the clicks, the shaking — it was moving, it was walking, and all you saw was its hand going [Lee does a clicker sound].

Craig and I were able watch the event. [Mazin, The Last of Us showrunner]We were able to track the entire fight.

They’d show us the scene, and then beep us into the scene. You would usually need to put on headphones and listen very slowly. There’s no clicker noise, so you make the clicker noise live when you’re watching it. Phil and I would each take turns, then we’d do things together.

Is it painful to make the clicking sound?

They let me down for 4 days after that session. It doesn’t hurt to do the sound, but what it does is it causes damage. I’ll teach you how. It was vocal rest time, so I had to stop. It’s probably severe vocal damage. It didn’t scar, but I have to be careful. It was only one game. In four hours, they got all the information from me. For the show, it was twice — we went in the first time and did several episodes, and went back to do some things they shot later.

The union put an end to our vocal stress. The union now has a ban on vocal stress. Even if you’re just shouting, it’s hard. When you do something like Call of Duty, you have 300 lines that you’re supposed to get through in a couple of hours. And they’re all, GRENADE! It’s life or death. You’re at war, and it’s loud war sounds. So it’s two hours now with union sessions that are vocally stressful. You’ve got to protect that stuff.

Have you ever been asked by people to use the clicker voice?

A friend of mine was just here, and he posted something on Twitter about how much the show meant to him. Then I thought, Enjoy your time here, and enjoy it together. He visited last night. You want to know how? Und he was asYes. I believe so.. Last night he came by to watch the show and gave me a clicker lesson. He was able to practice the clicker in his car and went back home fully aware of how it works.

Would love to be taught.

[Lee instructs Nicole to make the sound. Nicole tries and fails. Misty encourages Nicole some more. She is embarrassed, but eventually makes a weak clicker sound.]

If you do it a lot, you’re going to get hoarse. Imagine hours of doing that and trying to make somebody happy, because that’s our job as actors. These were the same actors. Only strange noises are what we want. When he said that to me, someone who likes to play and be gross — be careful what you wish for! We got exactly what we wanted. It wasn’t until they got that click where they went, Oh my god, that’s it. As I stated, clickers do not have eyes. They’re not human, not anymore, because the fungus has taken over. What do they call the ultimate evolution of a Pokémon? It’s more fungus than human. They’re looking for things through echolocation. A mushroom needs an eyeball.