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Hit-Monkey Season 2: Ally Maki on Haruka Changes, Leslie Jones & More

Ally Maki spoke with Bleeding Cool about the second season of the Marvel animated series Hit-Monkey, Leslie Jones joining the cast, and more.

Ally Maki has built an impressive filmography in her over 20-year career with roles on some of the biggest franchises in film and television. Early in her career, she appeared in NBC's ER, UPN/WB's Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Fox's Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles and Bones, and CBS's The Big Bang Theory. In recent years, she's appeared on CBS's NCIS, Fox's The New Girl, Freeform/Marvel's Cloak & Dagger, Max's Hacks, and AppleTV+'s The Big Door Prize. Since her 2011 debut in the voiceover world in Beach Bar: The Movie, Maki's scored several roles, including Pixar's Toy Story 4 (2019), Adult Swim's Robot Chicken and The Vindicators, Fox/TBS's American Dad!, Paramount+'s Beavis and Butt-Head. The Exploding Kittens star spoke to Bleeding Cool about season two of the Marvel animated series Hit-Monkey as Haruka, the by-the-book Tokyo cop who seeks redemption following Hit-Monkey (Fred Tatasciore) and Bryce (Jason Sudeikis), the assassin-turned-ghost bound to the macaque and trains him to be a ruthless killer, to New York.

Hit-Monkey Star Ally Maki on Haruko's Changes in Season Two, New Cast Members Leslie Jones and Cristin Milioti

Bleeding Cool: What's the biggest challenge playing Haruka for Hit-Monkey for season two?

The biggest challenge. What's fun is they brought everything to a new level this season. She's Haruka 2.0 because she's left everything she knows in Tokyo and is now in New York. There's a little less comfort for her. She's dealing with some new themes of redemption and fighting for justice. Temptation is a big thing for her, which weirdly brought a little more comedy to her character because she's placed in these new, uncomfortable situations with Bryce and Hit-Monkey. It was fun to play this season.

How do you feel about the new additions, Leslie and Cristin, and what they bring to the cast this season?

I got to see a rough cut and it was like a storyboard of Eunice and Haruka together for the first time. This is a standoff between Haruka against Eunice, back and forth, tit for tat. It was the first time I heard Leslie in character, and I was dying laughing. It was a great juxtaposition of the two. I'm excited to welcome these hilarious and talented women to the cast.

Do you record in group sessions, or are you alone in the booth?

I've always been by myself, because the first season we did during the pandemic, and the second season, there was all over Atlanta, New York, and some in LA. We always had [directors] Neal [Holman], Will [Speck], and Josh [Gordon] there at every session, and they kept it so fun and loose. Neal acts out all the characters every time, and they're good at giving alts and creating different moments that make it feel fun.

What's your favorite Haruko moment, or are we seeing it in season two?

There is a new element to Haruka's character this season. There was a first-look picture out where she has a weapon now this season that's reminiscent of a samurai sword, and she gets these glowing red eyes. That reveal is exciting and goes deeper into that theme. As I said, temptation and morality, you get to see her dealing with something and grappling, which will resonate with audiences.

Season two of Hit-Monkey, which also features the voices of Olivia Munn and Reiko Aylesworth, is available to stream on Hulu.

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