‘Futurama’ Star John DiMaggio Responds To Fans Unhappy With Recent Seasons: “Just Zip It”
As Futurama returns for its 12th season on Hulu, the sci-fi animation faces mixed reviews and a renewed long-standing debate among fans – and Bender voice actor John DiMaggio is having one of it.
Bender’s Voice Actor Not Taking It
Ever since it came back from its first official cancellation in 2008, the sci-fi comedy series has been criticized by some for being too ‘current’ with its recent stories, such as its parodying of the Apple iPhone and NFT crazes long, long after they were relevant to the real world.
However, it appears DiMaggio disagrees, as he recently responded to said critics by calling on them to “just zip it”.
“You know, people always like, ‘It’s not as good as the first couple of seasons,‘” DiMaggio told Newsweek during a recent interview. “It’s the same people [working on it]. Same writers, same everything. Just people think they know everything.”
Joining him in defense of the show was David Herman, who voices numerous characters on the show including Dr. Wernstrom and Scruffy the Janitor.
“It’s always been so topical,” Herman opined. “It’s always been social parody. It’s always been about the moment that we’re in, that’s science fiction in general.”
To this end, DiMaggio further declared, “It continues to do that this season, so if people don’t like it, take a walk.”
“They can jump in the lake,” he added. “They could fly a kite.”
And while DiMaggio may be quick to write off the criticisms, they’re far from the ‘fringe opinions’ that he dismisses them as.
After all, it wasn’t until well past season six, that the show went in a more topical direction – and one favoring a specific political party. Just look at the Season 7 episode Decision 3012, which basically just (favorably) parodied former President Barack Obama’s original presidential campaign.
Season 12
Sadly, this trend has continued on in the new Season 12, which has been teased to feature satirical takes on everything NFTs, to Netflix’s hit survival thriller Squid Game, to the Fyre Festival debacle.
Some fans see these references to contemporary issues as straying too far from the show’s original charm, in the process dating these recent episodes far harder than their predecessors. But others, particularly critics, believe that these episodes continue to deliver the classic Futurama comedy that won over fans in the first place.
But rather than see the show’s turn towards ever-more contemporary stories as detrimental, DiMaggio and Herman argue Futurama‘s topical humor is what keeps it fresh and insightful, as by addressing current events and trends, the show offers its audience a different lens through which to critique the world.
“[Futurama] reflects the times and you know, I mean we’re living in kind of some funky a-s times right now,” DiMaggio concluded. “[Season 12 can] get a little dark. There’s comedy in there too. There’s funny in dark sometimes, you know?”
Futurama‘s 12th season is currently airing exclusively on Hulu.
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