Which actor voices Gloria the hippopotamus in Madagascar?

Jada Pinkett Smith voices Gloria the hippopotamus in Madagascar.

Gloria is one of the four Central Park Zoo friends at the center of the Madagascar films. She is practical, confident and often serves as a stabilizing presence when Alex, Marty and Melman become distracted or anxious. Pinkett Smith’s performance gives Gloria a warm but assertive personality.

Pinkett Smith returned as Gloria in Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa and Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted. Gloria’s friendship with Melman becomes an important emotional thread in the trilogy, particularly as Melman struggles with fear and uncertainty.

The character is an adult hippopotamus, not a rhinoceros or elephant, and she is part of the same zoo group as Alex the lion, Marty the zebra and Melman the giraffe. The voice cast also includes Ben Stiller, Chris Rock and David Schwimmer, which can make individual roles easy to confuse.