Hank Azaria revives beloved character Agador to celebrate “The Birdcage”'s 30th anniversary

Marina WattsThu, March 12, 2026 at 7:24 PM UTC

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Hank Azaria in 2026; Hank Azaria in 1996's 'The Birdcage'Credit: Hank Azaria/X; EverettKey Points -

Hank Azaria is celebrating The Birdcage turning 30.

The actor, who starred as Agador in the beloved comedy, wore his "Straight Looking" tank top and paid tribute to his late costars Robin Williams and Gene Hackman and director Mike Nichols in a new video.

Azaria also noted that his maternal grandmother, Esther, inspired his character.

Agador Spartacus! Hank Azaria is looking back at 30 years of The Birdcage.

In a new video shared to social media, the multi-hyphenate rocked his character's "Straight Looking" tank top and paid homage to the 1996 comedy, which centers around a gay nightclub owner and his drag queen partner as they pretend to be straight for their first encounter with the conservative-leaning family of his son's fiancée.

"Hard to believe this week marks 30 years since #TheBirdcage came out," Azaria captioned the clip. "I had to put on my special shirt to celebrate!"

Nathan Lane, Hank Azaria, and Robin Williams in 'The Birdcage'Credit: Everett

"Hello, everybody. It's the 30th anniversary of The Birdcage movie, so I wore my special shirt," he began in the video, speaking in the accent of his beloved character, the housekeeper Agador.

"Fun fact: This is an impression of my maternal grandmother," he said of Agador. "My grandma Esther — we called her Mama. Rest in peace, Mama."

"And rest in peace, Gene Hackman and Robin Williams and Mike Nichols," he continued, remembering his late costars and the film's director and screenwriter."

Hackman died in February 2025 at 95, Williams died in 2014 at 63, and Nichols died in 2014 at 83.

Azaria also shouted out his castmates Calista Flockhart, Nathan Lane, Dan Futterman, "and everybody else from that movie."

"Thirty years, my god!" he said. "Anyway, I love you all."

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He ended the clip riffing on a famous quote from his character before tumbling off camera. "I just realized I'm wearing shoes," he said. "Oh no, I can't wear shoes... because they make me fall down!"

Many fans were quick to comment on Azaria's clip. "My sister and I quote this movie all the time," one user wrote. "Thank you for being part of it and bringing Agador Spartacus to magnificent life."

"Thirty years!!! Oh my God!" another wrote. "I love that movie. Williams is spectacular, Hackman is as always, we discover Calista, you're amazing, but the one who steals the show is Nathan Lane. What a performance… I have to watch it again." A third praised Azaria's "lovely tribute."

During an appearance on NPR's Fresh Air in December 2004, Azaria spoke about how he came up with the voice for his character. "In The Birdcage, I played a Guatemalan gay guy," he said. "Your body tends to follow the way that voice is. It's hard to carry yourself in a very macho way."

"On the one hand," he continued, "I tried to get a Guatemalan accent as authentically as I could, and then sort of find a way to be as feminine as I could. I sort of had it narrowed down to two voices."

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The Simpsons voice actor then presented the voice for Agador to his "very beautiful" drag queen friend in L.A., who selected the "more fruity voice," also telling Azaria to make sure it was "authentic" and "not too over the top."

Hank Azaria, Dan Futterman, and Robin Williams in 'The Birdcage'Credit: Everett

After working on the voice for two or three weeks, he realized it sounded exactly like his grandmother's. Given her maternal nature and loving personality, it was easy for him "to become feminine."

Said Azaria, "I was just kind of a grandma."

on Entertainment Weekly

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