Diary Of A Wimpy Kid's Brady Noon Reveals How He Keeps Greg Sympathetic - Exclusive

Though Greg is the protagonist of "Diary of a Wimpy Kid," he's also the cause of most of the story's problems. This is true both in the book series and the new movie, now streaming on Disney+. Greg's actions and choice hurt himself and others more than almost any bully could. He takes his anger out on his best friend Rowely, especially when Rowley becomes popular just by being himself. He also sabotages himself several times when he tries to make things right.

Jeff Kinney, author of the "Wimpy Kid" series and both a screenwriter and producer for this film, told Looper that "I think also with Greg is that any faults that he has, you can see them in yourself. Chances are, you've done one of the things that Greg has done." He acknowledges that Greg is just messy and immature, not cruel.

To get further insight, we spoke with Brady Noon, the voice of Greg. He shared with us how he saw Greg, and what he did to keep us rooting for him.

Noon, who grew up a big fan of the "Wimpy Kid" series, was able to relate to Greg in a few ways. "I have a good buddy of mine who reminds me of Rowley," he said, "and that's kind of the person that I hang out with, my right-hand man. And yeah, I understand where he's come from, like trying to figure out where he fits in and not too sure who his real friends are."

As for keeping Greg sympathetic, it all comes down to delivery. Noon tells us that "I try and always give it that forgiving tone. That's kind of the approach that I took towards it because I don't want him to be lost in his ways either. I want him to feel like he's always trying to do the right thing, but he kind of doesn't realize that he's doing the wrong thing until he tries to make it better." He made sure that he wasn't mean, but "almost like a backhanded sort of remark or something like that. I wouldn't always try and be mean ever with Greg."

"Diary of a Wimpy Kid" is now streaming on Disney+.