Fans of Futurama can breathe a sigh of relief.
John DiMaggio has officially joined the cast of the forthcoming Hulu revival, completing the cast ahead of production.
There was a great deal of skepticism when Hulu revealed the existence of the revival, and DiMaggio’s name was missing.
At the time, it was reported that he felt the cast deserved a higher salary than they were offered.
The good news is that those issues appear to be ironed out to make way for the actor’s return in the role of Bender.
“I’M BACK, BABY! So damn grateful for the love and support of fans and colleagues alike during this whole time (especially my wife, Kate), and I cannot wait to get back to work with my Futurama family,” DiMaggio said in a statement, according to Variety.
He continued: “#Bendergate is officially over, so put it on the back of a shelf behind Xmas decorations, or maybe in that kitchen drawer with all of the other crap you put in there like old unusable crazy glue, or maybe even put it in a jar you save farts in.”
“Whatever floats your boat, I don’t care, you get the picture. I’M BACK, BABY! BITE MY SHINY METAL ASS!”
DiMaggio joins returning cast members Billy West, Katey Sagal, Tress MacNeille, Maurice LaMarche, Lauren Tom, Phil LaMarr, and David Herman.
20 new episodes have been ordered, which is a big order for streaming, but not too far away from the show’s original orders when it aired on FOX.
Hulu recently ordered a supersized 20-episode second season of How I Met Your Father, so the streaming service is clearly experimenting with bigger orders, likely airing as split seasons.
“From the moment John DiMaggio auditioned last century, we knew we had our Bender,” Groening said in a statement of his own.
“So congrats to everyone at Futurama. We’re all back, baby!”
“John DiMaggio may be a great robot, but he’s also a great human being,” added the show’s executive producer David X. Cohen.
“Not many people or machines can say that. For the fourth time, it’s a once-in-a-lifetime thrill to be back with our entire original cast and the phenomenal animators of Rough Draft Studios!”
What are your thoughts on John DiMaggio’s return as Bender?
Will you watch the revival?
Hit the comments below.
Paul Dailly is the Associate Editor for TV Fanatic. Follow him on Twitter.
