Biography
Who is Kari Wahlgren?
Early life and education
Kari Wahlgren Khabira Wahlgren was born in Hoisington, Kansas, on July 13, 1977. As a child, she grew up watching Disney movies and listening to various animated characters, which sparked her early interest in the field. Her parents worked as teachers, a background that influenced her to support organizations focused on education and literacy throughout her career.
During a family trip to California when she was 11, Kari toured the studios for Focus on the Family. She received a small role as a character named Gloria McCoy in their radio drama series titled Adventures in Odyssey. This initial experience helped solidify her interest in voice work. Later, she attended the University of Kansas, where she completed a Bachelor of Arts in Theater in 1999.
Voice acting career beginnings
After living in Kansas City and performing radio spots, Kari moved to Los Angeles in 2000. She initially sought on-camera acting work but found more success focusing on voice-over projects. Her training in Shakespeare and dialogue helped her master various accents and character types. Her first major anime role was Haruko Haruhara in the six-part series FLCL. She later reprised this character in sequels like FLCL: Progressive and FLCL: Alternative.
Her work in anime expanded significantly with roles such as Robin Sena in Witch Hunter Robin, Lavie Head in Last Exile, and Fuu Kasumi in Samurai Champloo. She also voiced characters in various films, including Scarlett in the animated movie Steamboy and Pacifica Casull in Scrapped Princess. These early roles established her presence in the California voice-acting scene.
Television and video game roles
Kari has an extensive list of credits in Western animation. She voiced characters in shows like Super Robot Monkey Team Hyperforce Go!, Ben 10, and Phineas and Ferb. She also provided voices for Rick and Morty and the Disney+ series Ice Age: Scrat Tales. In 2023, she won a Children and Family Emmy Award for her work on the series SuperKitties.
In the gaming industry, her career began with the role of Willow Rosenberg in Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Chaos Bleeds. She is well known for voicing Ashe in Final Fantasy XII and Shelke in Dirge of Cerberus: Final Fantasy VII. She also provided the voice for Kitana and Mileena in the Mortal Kombat series starting with Mortal Kombat 11. Other well-known game credits include Star Wars: The Old Republic and Cyberpunk 2077.
Family and personal life
Kari is of Swedish and Irish descent. In December 2022, she announced that she was pregnant with her first child, fathered by drummer Bobby Rock. She gave birth to their son in January 2023.
Birthday and age
Kari Wahlgren was born on July 13, 1977, which makes Kari 49 years old today. That birthday falls under the Cancer sign. Kari shares the date with 30 other famous people.
Explore more
