Posted in: Hulu, TV | Tagged: king of the hill

King of the Hill Season 14 Director on How New Opening Came Together

Animator and King of the Hill S14E01 Director Kelly Turnbull shared some interesting insights into how the new opening came together.

Based on the number of reaction videos that we're seeing and how social media has been buzzing about it, the new opening for Hulu's upcoming revival of Mike Judge and Greg Daniels' animated series King of the Hill is hitting hard with fans on a number of levels in some very good (and emotional) ways. After years working a propane job in Saudi Arabia to earn their retirement nest egg, the August 4th-premiering season finds Hank and Peggy Hill returning to a changed Arlen, Texas, to reconnect with old friends Dale, Boomhauer, and Bill. Meanwhile, Bobby is living his dream as a chef in Dallas and enjoying his 20s with his former classmates Connie, Joseph, and Chane. As iconic as the original opening is, the new opening found a way to get fans caught up on what's been going down since we were last with them, it raised a whole lot of questions, and brought out more than its fair share of tears.

Shortly after the new opening was released, Animator Kelly Turnbull took to Bluesky to announce that they had directed the opening episode and "really like" what the return season has to offer. "I didn't talk about it much because I didn't want weird assholes doxxing my emails and trying to break into my portfolio (that doesn't even have KotH boards on it for exactly that reason) but I directed the premiere episode of the revival series," Turnbull posted. "I might be biased because I'm so close to it, but I really like the new episodes and I hope other people do too. I read the first script and I was like 'feels like coming home.'"

Turnbell also offered some behind-the-scenes insights into how the WGA strike impacted the planning stages for the opening, and the intricacies involved with bringing it to animated life. "The wild thing with the KotH intro was they did the tone meeting where they went over the general idea of what they wanted and then all the writers went on strike the next day, so me and Wes fleshed out the details together and anticipated a lot of revisions, but they were just like 'we love it,' Turnbull shared. "It took a HUGE amount of planning to get everything working in time with the music and then add all the seasonal changes; I had multiple colour-coded versions with different outfit changes because any time one thing had to get revised, it would knock over a whole pile of dominoes."

Judge, Kathy Najimy, Stephen Root, Pamela Adlon, Lauren Tom, and Toby Huss are returning for the animated series. Huss will take over the role of Dale Gribble from the late Johnny Hardwick, who recorded six episodes of the upcoming season before passing away in August 2023. Huss is no stranger to the series, having voiced two characters during the show's original run: Kahn Souphanousinphone and Cotton Hill.

How it started : How it's going

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— Kelly Turnbull (@coelasquid.bsky.social) May 30, 2025 at 3:24 PM

King of the Hill: Some Previous Updates on Series Return

Speaking with Variety on a wide range of subjects, Disney Television Group President Craig Erwich was asked earlier this month if there was ever any talk of ABC or Hulu making a first-run play for any of the Disney-owned animated series that have a home on FOX. Yesterday, FOX announced that it had given four-season renewals to The Simpsons, Bob's Burgers, Family Guy, and the returning American Dad!

"I think we're really happy with the arrangement that we have. Hulu is the home to adult animation. We have the best offering by a mile. 'The Simpsons,' 'Family Guy,' past and now new seasons of 'Futurama,' and past and now new seasons of 'King of the Hill,'" Erwich responded before taking a moment to drop a tease about what viewers can expect from the animated series' return. "I think people are going to love the new 'King of the Hill.' It is so perfect for our times without trying too hard. You see Hank Hill in a whole new way."

Grammy Award-winning singer/songwriter Grey DeLisle posted several images from a King of the Hill event from October 2024 that included an "ABOUT THE CHEF" poster  – with the profile spotlighting Chef Bobby Hill. Along with some interesting intel on what Bobby has been up to, we also get fun easter eggs ("Spa-Peggy and Meatballs"), learn that he was one of the youngest contestants on the "King of the Grill" competition series, and have our "feels" punched when a reference to grilling with his dad on the weekends gets dropped. Another interesting tease? When asked if she was voicing Bobby, DeLisle responded that she wasn't – but that she would be voicing "somebody very cool."

"It feels really special," Adlon shared back in March 2024 about how it felt to be returning to the beloved animated series during the red carpet for Variety's Power of Comedy event earlier this year – crediting the "new generation of young writers" for finding that "sweet spot" between what viewers love and respect about the series and tweaking it for a new generation of viewers. But Adlon also shared how tough it was losing Hardwick, even though they all feel that he's been with them during recording – with Adlon adding that Harwick had recorded four episodes.

"We're in the second season [creating] the reboot, and Bobby is 21. He's a chef in a fusion restaurant in Dallas. And it's been incredible. It's just been really fun. I think it's been freakier for Mike [Judge] and Greg [Daniels] to think about Bobby going from 12 to being 21 and having a relationship and being a person," Adlon shared with MovieWeb two months later, in May. "But don't we all go through that with our kids and our friends' kids? It is shocking when I see my friends' kids and they're all grown up. And I'm like, 'Wait a second, what just happened?' So, it's just a little bit of a mess."

Set in the fictional Arlen, Texas, King of the Hill followed the life of Hank Hill (Judge), an enthusiastic seller of propane and propane accessories; his wife, Peggy (Najimy), local Boggle champ and substitute teacher; and their 13-year-old son, Bobby (Adlon), who defies any expectation his father had for a son. Hank's friends – conspiracy theorist Dale (Hardwick), military barber Bill (Root), and cool but inarticulate Boomhauer (Judge), along with Peggy's friends Minh (Tom) and meteorologist Nancy (Ashley Gardner), and Bobby's friend Connie (Tom) help the Hills navigate a changing world.

Stemming from 20th Television Animation, Judge and Daniels are creating and executive producing the series – with 3 Arts' Michael Rotenberg & Howard Klein and Bandera Entertainment's Dustin Davis also executive producing.

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