Last November, voice actress Pamela Hayden made the surprise announcement that she was retiring effective immediately, and that her last performance of her signature character, Milhouse Van Houten, would air that Sunday. Hayden became the first major Simpsons VA to officially retire from the show…the list is long at this point, but most have left through dying. (The gig is that good.)
Milhouse appeared in most episodes up to last November, when he started becoming scarce — and when he did appear, he wouldn’t speak. His most recent appearance was yesterday’s episode, where the top half of his head was visible in a crowd full of children. Hayden’s other characters, like Jimbo Jones, haven’t been seen much either. That will change this Sunday when the new Jimbo is heard for the first time.
Actress Mo Collins has been cast as Springfield’s neighborhood bully. She’s appeared on several shows, but the one most likely to stick in your mind is that of pushy local celebrity (and one of Leslie’s many nemeses) Joan Callamezzo on Parks And Recreation. It’s weird the new Jimbo would be cast before the new Milhouse, but perhaps they want to take the time to get Mr. Blue Eyebrows sounding just right.
For the curious, here is the official list of voice actor turnover at The Simpsons:
In many of the “death” cases, the characters were retired. Others have simply had reduced roles where they don’t speak. Lunchlady Doris (Grau) and Martin Prince (Taylor) were eventually recast. The voice of Carl Carlson was also changed from Harry Shearer to Alex Desert after the industry started mandating Black characters be voiced by Black VAs. The Simpsons currently airs Sundays on Fox; it was just renewed for four additional seasons.
The post The Simpsons Has Found Its New Jimbo appeared first on Anime Superhero News.
