Why Do Actors Think All Birds Say “Ka Kaw”?

Here’s a hypothetical situation. Let’s say that you’re an actor. The script for the production that you are acting in requires you to make a “bird” sound. What sound do you make? There are lots of options. You could whistle, or say things like “tweet” or “chirp,” but what do most actors say? They all make a ka kaw sound. But why?

Examples Of Actors Making Ka Kaw Ka Kaw Sounds

Here’s a compilation of actors making ridiculous ka-kaw sounds that includes scenes from The Rundown, Up, Arrested Development, and Evolution among others. And yes, actor Seann William Scott is the star of this clip.

As extensive as this video compilation might seem, there are actually a lot more instances of actors saying “ka-kaw ka-kaw” in popular movies and TV shows.

In the 2005 animated movie Robots, starring Ewan McGregor, Halle Berry, and Mel Brooks, the robots struggle to come up with a secret signal to alert the rest of their team. Then one of the robots suggests saying, you guessed it, “ka-kaw.”

And then there’s the Three Amigos scene when Steve Martin hilariously tries to get the attention of Chevy Chase and Martin Short by making a variety of bird noises. Although he doesn’t exactly say “ka-kaw” or “ca caw,” he repeatedly says “kaw kaw” and other absurd bird-like noises.

Who Started “Ka Kaw Ka Kaw”?

At what point did every actor collectively decide that all bird sounds should be “ka kaw ka kaw”? We’re not sure who started “ka-kaw,” but Three Amigos is the oldest movie that we’ve found so far. Maybe Steve Martin inspired everyone and now ka-kaw is an inside Hollywood joke similar to the Wilhelm scream.

The bottom line is, only one bird actually makes a sound even similar to “ka kaw,” and that’s a crow. But don’t tell that to St. Louis BattleHawks fans. Even though the XFL football team is named after a hawk, the BattleHawks chant is… you guessed it, ka kaw! The team and its fans are so obsessed with ka-kaw that their slogan is Ka Kaw Is The Law.

Is This All Just Ka-Kaw Ka-Crazy?

So, should we stop with all of this “ka-kaw” nonsense? Does a crow say “caw” or “kaw,” and does it even matter? Should we allow both? Let us know in the comments.