On Wednesday, it was announced that Hulu was working on a revival of the beloved Matt Groening animated series Futurama. However, when it was revealed that John DiMaggio, who plays Bender on the show, was still in talks, the excitement quickly faded.
The revival appears to be moving forward, with Bender being recast ahead of Monday’s first table read. Following a stalemate in negotiations between DiMaggio and 20th Television Animation, the decision was made, according to Deadline, despite the fact that there is “a desire on both sides” for him to return to the role.
It’s hard to believe that a revival could get this far without securing all of the main characters’ voices. Perhaps this is all part of DiMaggio’s long-term strategy. Hours after the news was announced, on Wednesday evening.
However, that wasn’t nearly enough to appease Bender fans, who took to Twitter in force — many of whom were retweeted by DiMaggio — to declare that there is no Futurama without the original Bender.
We don’t want it without DiMaggio as Bender,” vlogger Kristin Chirico told Hulu, speaking for the majority of fans.
On Twitter, voice actor Roger Craig Smith pointed out the “irony” of Hulu announcing the revival with a picture of Bender.
Hulu may be able to dig a little deeper into its pockets to scrounge up some more money to bring DiMaggio back after all the backlash from fans. While they’re at it, they might as well give him a brand new convertible for his trouble.
