Family Guy star Alex Borstein comments on the conditions under which she would end her 20-year tenure on the show. Borstein joined Family Guy as Lois upon the series’ inception in 1999. While Family Guy was initially canceled after season 3, Fox revived the series in 2005. Now in its 20th season, Seth MacFarlane’s acclaimed animated series centers on the Griffins, a New England family led by its equal opportunity offender protagonist Peter (MacFarlane). Indeed, the series has kept a politically incorrect finger on the pulse for over two decades, inciting belly laughs as well as grumblings over indecency.
MacFarlane bears the brunt of the voice acting work in Family Guy, playing the parts of Peter, Stewie, Quagmire, and Brian the anthropomorphized dog. That said, Borstein voices a number of recurring characters, including Tricia Takanawa and Barbara Pewterschmidt, and won an Emmy for voicing Lois in 2018. She has also lent her voice acting abilities to the Power Rangers franchise, Robot Chicken, Bordertown, and Family Guy’s in-universe spinoff series The Cleveland Show. In addition to voicing Lois, Borstein is a series producer and staff writer on Family Guy.
In an interview with PopCulture, Borstein reveals what it would take for her to end her historic Family Guy run. "It's insane, right? I was 15 when we started,” Borstein joked about the show’s longevity. Ultimately, the actress says, she would bow out when the jokes start to fizzle. “If I'm still laughing when I receive a script,” says Borstein, “then it's still a pleasure to do.” Read the actress’ full quote below:
"I love those people, I love that character. [I’ll stay] as long as the writers are able to come up with stories that in some way are fresh and interesting. Every time I read a script, I laugh out loud. So, that's my measure. My barometer is, if I'm still laughing when I receive a script, then it's still a pleasure to do."
Luckily for fans of Family Guy, Borstein has yet to flag her funny barometer, and clearly still finds the show's scripts worth sticking around for. Furthermore, MacFarlane and company are showing no signs of stopping. Family Guy has already been renewed for season 21, with Lois, Peter and their bizarre family securing a spot on Fox until at least 2023.
Borstein’s endorsement of the long-running series also means she won’t be leaving for greener pastures, and it’s not as if she hasn’t had the opportunity. The actress has appeared in countless films and TV shows over the course of her Family Guy tenure. Since 2017, Borstein has starred in Amazon’s The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. For her role as Midge’s no-nonsense manager Susie Myerson, Borstein won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series in 2018 – the same year she won for Family Guy – and again in 2019. For the time being, die-hard Borstein heads will find no shortage of the actress’ talents. The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel season 4 premieres on February 18, and Family Guy airs Sundays on Fox.
Source: PopCulture.com