All good things must come to an end, and one of the longest and most successful runs of any voice actor is apprently coming to an end thanks to a contract dispute. There have been lots of contract disputes in the history of Fox’s smash hit The Simpsons, and some have nearly derailed the show. This one will only derail part of the show. Harry Shearer is leaving The Simpsons after 26 seasons.
Shearer will be replaced, according to producer James L. Brooks, but they’re going to have to replace a lot of Springfield’s most popular characters. Among the many that Shearer voiced were Mr. Burns, Smithers, Reverend Lovejoy, Ned Flanders, Kent Brockman, and of course, Ranier ‘McBain’ Wolfcastle. According to Brooks, no expense will be spared in bringing in top-flight voice acting talent to take over the roles. Given how much the voices have changed over the years, if it wasn’t such a big announcement, some people might not notice (and Shearer’s reported $14 million dollar contract will pay for a lot of replacements).
Tags: james l brooks, fox, fox network, the simpsons, harry shearer, harry shearer is leaving the simpsons, the simpsons contract dispute, harry shearer leaving simpsons, simpsons voice actors, mr burns, smithers, reverend lovejoy, ned flanders, kent brockman