The beloved Futurama animated TV series, which initially premiered over 20 years ago in 1999, is officially returning to Hulu. Created by Matt Groening, the series ran for four seasons on Fox, alongside fellow Groening TV series The Simpsons. After being canceled by that network, the property received four direct-to-video films, distributed as 16 new, half-hour episodes developed and aired by Comedy Central. Futurama was then revived for two additional seasons at Comedy Central, with the final season airing in 2013. In 2014, Fox also aired an official The Simpsons and Futurama crossover episode titled "Simpsorama."
The core Futurama cast included Katey Sagal as Leela, known for popular shows like Married With Children and Sons of Anarchy. And the ever-popular robot character Bender was voiced by veteran voice actor John DiMaggio. Meanwhile, Billy West voice several major characters throughout the series, including the show's main character Fry and others such as Philip J. Fry, Professor Farnsworth, Doctor Zoidberg, and Zapp Brannigan. Throughout the series run, Futurama also earned multiple Primetime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Animated Program, and in 2009 IGN named Futurama as the eighth-best in its "Top 100 Animated TV Series" list.
20th Television Animation and Hulu today officially announced the return of the decades-spanning hit series Futurama, with an order of 20 brand-new episodes for Hulu's streaming platform set to premiere in 2023. Among the cast members that are officially returning for the new Hulu series revival are stars West, Sagal, Tress MacNeille, Maurice LaMarche, Lauren Tom, David Herman, and Phil LaMarr. Craig Erwich, President of Hulu Originals and ABC Entertainment, also shared a statement celebrating the return of the fan-favorite series.
“When presented with the opportunity to bring fans and viewers new episodes of Futurama, we couldn’t wait to dive in. This iconic series helped blaze the trail for the success of adult animation since its initial launch and we look forward to Matt & David continuing to pave the way and further establishing Hulu as the premiere destination for fans of the genre.”
According to Deadline, the role of Bender is currently being recast as a result of DiMaggio's negotiations with Futurama studio 20th Television Animation coming to a standstill. Reportedly, DiMaggio felt the proposal was not competitive enough, based on the previous success and ongoing name recognition of the widely popular original series. Fellow leads, West and Sagal, have agreed to a deal after a period of back-and-forth negotiating. Although on a more promising note, THR reports that an agreement is currently being finalized for DiMaggio to return as everyone's favorite wise-cracking foul-mouthed robot, though a deal has not yet been closed.
Hulu seems to be the ideal home for the return of Futurama after the streamer also recently successfully resurrected the Animaniacs series, which was originally canceled in 1998. Futurama also joins other current adult-oriented animated programs on Hulu, such as Solar Opposites and Rick and Morty. Notably, the streaming platform is home to the catalog of fellow original Fox network show Family Guy, which also premiered the same year in 1999. That series shares a parallel journey, having been canceled early on and then revived later, in large part due to strong DVD sales as Futurama was. Hulu seems to have a unique understanding and successful approach towards handling legacy animated programs, and this bodes very well for the future of Futurama.
Source: Hulu, Deadline, THR