PEGI 18’s Voice Actor Got €200 For His Iconic Work, Shares Thoughts On AI

Richard Wells, the man behind the iconic “PEGI 18” rating label used in video game, trailers received €200 as compensation. Wells posted his first video on TikTok introducing himself and revealing his role as the voice behind the globally known tagline, boosting him on the platform. The video gained steam, racking up an astronomical amount of views, and netting Wells over 100,000 followers.

@richardwells48

♬ original sound – Richard Wells

In a follow-up to his initial video, Wells talked about the staggering response and positivity he received. After a brief section on how he posted the same video twice due to being new to the whole thing, Richard brought up one question he received about how much money he made for “PEGI 18.” He replied, “I actually did get paid €200 back in September 2009 and that’s all the money I ever made.” 

Hi, I’m Richard Wells, and I’ve been a professional voice actor for 40 years. I’ve made at least 10,000 recordings and spoken millions of words – but ironically I’m best known for just two. You won’t know my face, but millions of you gamers really do know my voice – because I’m the guy who says ‘PEGI 18’ on all your video games.”

While many have raised the point that Richard wasn’t compensated fairly for his work with PEGI 18 and the other ratings, Wells himself seems to have a rather positive outlook on the entire situation. He says, “The result is that I got over 2 million friends which is great.” 

He goes on to talk about his views regarding AI and voice-over jobs. According to Richard, AI right now is “pretty great but scary also.” Apart from being good for hack jobs, it doesn’t capture the human elements of intent, emphasis, and emotion.

You can follow Richard on his official TikTok for more.