Burke Bennett

"The rhino's become a menace. I think he's talkin' to people he shouldn't be talkin' to."

- Burke Bennett

Burke Bennett is the main antagonist of Death to Smoochy. He is a businessman who happens to be a talent scout for children's TV network Kidnet, and the Parade of Hope charity organization.

He is portrayed by , who also portrayed Harry Wormwood in Matilda and The Penguin in Batman Returns and voiced Mr. Swackhammer in Space Jam.

History
Burke worked closely for the "squeaky clean" children's television network Kidnet and also with the charity organization known as the Parade of Hope.

He enjoys making money while working for that organization regardless of the consequences.

Burke later recruited the "squeaky clean" Sheldon Mopes and his character Smoochy the Rhino due to his partner Frank Stokes. Mopes quickly finds himself losing creative control over his show to his hardened producer Nora Wells. With the help of his new agent Burke Bennett, Mopes renegotiates his contract and is named executive producer. But Burke has other plans for him.

Meanwhile, Rainbow Randolph sets a scheme to destroy Mopes's career and regain his show too all fail. Burke would also congratulate Mopes for his success and gives Mopes a revolver in a bag as a gift / "handy accessory" along with informing him that the restaurant they are in is owned by Tommi Cotter and the Irish Mob and explaining about Spinner Dunn and his condition. Burke later gives Mopes his very own patch of wheat grass, but Mopes soon becomes enraged to learn that Burke signed him up to star in a Smoochy ice show; he feels that the event will exploit children. Burke and Merv Green, the heads of the corrupt charity running the ice show, unsuccessfully warn Mopes from backing out of the event. Later, after the show was halted and later restored, due to Rainbow Randolph framing Smoochy for being at an unlawful neo-Nazi rally, Smoochy commits to the ice show. He decides that half of all the proceeds will go to the drug rehab clinic he used to work at, which was closed due to lack of funding in addition that the other half goes to child literacy enhancement programs; the kids will be given free souvenirs and healthy snacks. Because this means that the Parade of Hope won't be seeing any of that money, Burke and Green retaliate by plotting to kill Mopes and hire a new host who will cooperate with their profit skimming. However, Green and his men accidentally kill Spinner in his Moochy costume; Green was later discovered and killed by Cotter.

Burke and Stokes hire heroin addict Buggy Ding Dong, another former host, to assassinate Mopes during his ice show. Buggy steals a backstage pass to get inside. However, Randolph, who has been summoned to the ice show, tackles Buggy just as he tries to shoot Mopes from the rafters. Randolph and Buggy struggle for the sniper rifle, until Buggy falls to his death. After Mopes realizes that Burke and Stokes set him up, he chases after Burke into an alley.

Burke and Stokes were at Tommi Cutter's mercy while Nora and Sheldon left.

Deleted Scene
In the last deleted scene at the end of the film, after Tommy Cutter asks Burke and Stokes "You boys ever traveled together before?", she and her boys shoot the two crooks with their eyes shut in fear for the murder of her cousin Spinner. Sheldon and Nora on their way out heard the gunshots. Nora simply said "They were a$$holes." and they both left.