When it was announced last year that Futurama would be returning after a 10-year hiatus for another season courtesy of Hulu, there was a little something missing. As it seemed, John DiMaggio would not be returning to voice Bender, one of the most important and beloved characters on Futurama, as the performer had told the studio to bite his shiny metal ass — well, in terms a little more appropriate for a human being. Thankfully, things worked out, with the bonus of DiMaggio making an impression along the way.
According to John DiMaggio, his decision to reprise Bender for the upcoming season of Futurama was a tough one due to negotiations related to money, telling Variety, “When they made the announcement, it wasn’t like I had said no. We had been negotiating for a long time…It was a stalemate.” He added, “I didn’t want, nor did my agent want, me standing outside of a house that I should have been having Thanksgiving dinner in…It was just like, OK, I gotta say yes, because I don’t want the demise of the show on my shoulders.’ They were ready to bring in other people. It was what it was.”
Even though the studio wasn’t exactly screaming, “Shut up and take my money!”, DiMaggio saw the importance of his participation and eventually decided to sign on as robot Bender, with Futurama set to return on July 24th.
The actor’s stance on the matter immediately calls to mind the current SAG-AFTRA strike, something John DiMaggio is well aware of. “It’s kind of interesting that the strike is happening, because it’s all the stuff that I wanted and was fighting for — not only myself, but everybody else…Now it’s not just me versus them. Now it’s everybody versus them.”
The upcoming eighth season — sometimes referred to as the 11th — isn’t the first time Futurama has been revived, with Comedy Central picking it up for a fifth season comprised of four movies chopped into 16 episodes. To date, the show has won two Primetime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Animated Program.
Do you think the upcoming season of Futurama would have been lacking without John DiMaggio as Bender? Are you looking forward to season 11? Let us know in the comments below!