Ernie Sabella

Ernie Sabella is an American actor born on September 19, 1949, in Westchester County, New York. He studied at the University of Miami's Department of Theatre Arts, where he performed at the Jerry Herman Ring Theatre. His Broadway career spans from 1976 to 2007, encompassing starring roles and featured appearances across multiple productions.

Sabella's stage work began with The Robber Bridegroom in 1976. Subsequent Broadway credits include Little Johnny Jones (1982), Guys and Dolls (1992) in the role of Harry the Horse, A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum (1996) as Marcus Lycus, Man of La Mancha (2002) as Sancho Panza, Sweet Charity (2005), and Curtains, in which he played Sidney Bernstein when the production opened officially on March 22, 2007. In A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, Sabella appeared alongside Nathan Lane, who portrayed Pseudolus.

Sabella is widely recognized for voicing Pumbaa in Disney's The Lion King franchise, a role he originated in the 1994 animated film and continued across multiple sequels, spin-offs, and other media, with the exception of the 2019 and 2024 films. He reprised the role in the 2015 television pilot The Lion Guard: Return of the Roar and subsequently became a recurring cast member in the full series The Lion Guard. His collaboration with Nathan Lane, who voiced Timon in the franchise, extended beyond The Lion King to include Guys and Dolls, the film Mouse Hunt, a deleted scene in The Producers, and A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum. The two also appeared together on Lane's Saturday Night Live monologue, performing "Hakuna Matata."

His film credits include Quiz Show (1994), in which he played a car salesman, and In & Out (1997), where he portrayed Aldo Hooper. On television, Sabella played apartment manager Lou Donatelli in the Jason Bateman comedy It's Your Move (1984–1985) and store owner and landlord Donald Twinkacetti on Perfect Strangers (1986–1987). He had a five-episode arc on Saved by the Bell in 1991 as Leon Carosi, a resort manager and owner, with Leah Remini appearing as his daughter. Additional recurring television roles include the attorney Harland Bassett on The Practice (2000–2001), Leo in the Nathan Lane sitcom Encore! Encore! (2000), and the teacher Mr. Petrachelli on That's So Raven (2003). He also appeared in a 1992 episode of Seinfeld and a 1985 episode of Cheers, playing private investigator Santo Carbone. In a Quantum Leap episode titled "Catch a Falling Star," he played the dual role of Manny, a stage actor, and Sancho Panza, the character Manny performs in a touring production of Man of La Mancha. In 2015, Sabella appeared in the sixth-season Blue Bloods episode "Hold Outs" as Leon, an apartment building superintendent.

Sabella received a Daytime Emmy Award nomination in 1996 for Outstanding Performer in an Animated Program and a DVDX Award nomination in 2005 for Best Animated Character Performance. He met his wife Cheryl near the backstage door following a performance of Guys and Dolls in 1994, and the two married in 1999.