Posted in: Hulu, Preview, streaming, TV | Tagged: bender, futurama, hulu, john dimaggio, preview

Futurama: John DiMaggio Explains Position; "Still Hoping for the Best"

Published Tue, 15 Feb 2022 20:57:10 -0600

Earlier this month, Futurama fans learned that Hulu, David X. Cohen & Matt Groening's 20-episode revival of Futurama will see Billy West, Katey Sagal, Tress MacNeille, Maurice LaMarche, Lauren Tom, Phil LaMarr, and David Herman return to beloved animated series. But the excitement has been undercut by a big name missing from that list, John DiMaggio aka Bender. Though it would appear that there hasn't been much of a change when it comes to the negotiating stalemate that currently exists between DiMaggio's team and the streamer & studio, the actor had taken to Twitter to explain why things have gotten to this point. In his update, DiMaggio wants to make it clear that it's not that he thinks that he deserves to be paid more as much as "the entire cast does." He goes on to explain that negotiations are part of the process and a very personal one at that. "Bender is part of my soul & nothing about this is meant to be disrespectful to the fans or my 'Futurama' family," DiMaggio continued, stressing that back-n-forth was about a sense of self-respect and doing his part to make sure that an "artist's time & talent" are fairly compensated. "Still hoping for the best," DiMaggio wrote towards the end of the post as he thanked everyone for their love and support.

Here's a look back at DiMaggio's tweet from earlier this evening explaining his position in the negotiations going on with Hulu (and also dropping us some quick intel on AMC's

Update: #bendergate pic.twitter.com/tBG7d9hQ3R

— John DiMaggio (@TheJohnDiMaggio) February 16, 2022

"I'm thrilled to have another chance to think about the future… or really anything other than the present," said Cohen. Groening added, "It's a true honor to announce the triumphant return of 'Futurama' one more time before we get canceled abruptly again." Produced by 20th Television Animation with Rough Draft Studios, Inc. providing the animation, the series focuses on the life of Philip Fry (West), a 25-year-old pizza delivery boy who accidentally freezes himself on December 31, 1999, and wakes up 1,000 years later with a fresh start at life and a new group of friends that includes tough but lovely one-eyed alien Leela (Sagal) and walking robotic Id with one-liners, Bender.

Craig Erwich, president of Hulu Originals and ABC Entertainment, added, "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." Marci Proietto, head of 20th Television Animation, concluded, "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. 'Futurama' is one of those shows. The excitement from Hulu about returning Matt and David's genius creation for all-new episodes has been off the charts. I'm thrilled that this incredible team will get to tell more stories, and that our Planet Express crew will have more adventures together. It's a win for the fans who have loved the show since the beginning, and for the ones who will now discover it for the very first time."

Enjoyed this? Please share on social media!