Hulu has ordered 20 new episodes of Futurama, the animated sci-fi comedy series created and developed by The Simpsons creator Matt Groening and David X. Cohen.
Many of the original Futurama cast members, including Billy West (Fry), Katey Sagal (Leela), Lauren Tom (Amy), and Phil LaMarr (Hermes), will return for the revival. John Dimaggio, voice of nihilistic robot Bender, is not currently attached, though there is hope that he will join. Bender is one of the series’ most iconic characters, and if Dimaggio is not involved, the role will reportedly be recast. Voice actors Tress MacNeille, Maurice LaMarche, and David Herman are also confirmed to return.
Futurama premiered in 1999, and followed 25-year-old slacker Philip Fry, who accidentally wound up in cryogenic freeze and woke up 1,000 years in the future, where he joins up with a delivery company. From 1999 to 2003,Futurama aired on Fox, where it garnered a cult following, and was later picked up for an initial revival by Comedy Central in 2007. That run of the show ended in 2013 — but this second revival will bring it back for streaming on Hulu.
“What I love about animation is that it’s possible for a successful show to take a pause and then resume years later, even on a different platform, and pick up right where it left off,” says Marci Proietto, head of 20th Television Animation.
“It’s a true honor to announce the triumphant return of Futurama one more time before we get canceled abruptly again,” Groening said in a news release.
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