The end is near…for Harry Shearer’s time as Black The Simpsons character Dr. Hibbert.
The last episode Dr. Hibbert will be voiced by Shearer, who voiced the character for over 30 years, is Feb. 28, according to TV Line.
After Shearer will retire from the role, Kevin Michael Richardson will take over. According to TV Line, Richardson is already well-known by The Simpsons crew since he has contributed voice work to the show since 2009. Shearer, on the other hand, will continue to voice several of his other characters on the show, including Mr. Burns, Principal Skinner, and Ned Flanders.
The recast is part of a wave of voice actor recastings in primetime and streaming animation as part of entertainment’s response to the death of George Floyd. The Simpsons, though, has had a referendum on its animated Blackface and Brownface years before 2020’s eye-opening racial uprising.
In 2017, The Simpsons were put on blast for hiring Hank Azaria as convenience store owner Apu in Hari Kondabolu’s documentary, The Problem with Apu. Azaria has since retired from the role, but The Simpsons has yet to recast the role.
