Futurama voice actor John DiMaggio goes on holiday in Cabo and is greeted with a design by his character Bender who greets him on the beach.
Futurama voice actor John DiMaggio is greeted with a drawing of his character Bender on the beach he is vacationing near. Futurama, which was recently given the green light by Hulu for yet another revival (the series has seen runs on Fox, home video and Comedy Central) made headlines with DiMaggio’s announcement that he would not repeat his iconic role as Bender, the misanthropic robot. After several weeks of negotiations, DiMaggio confirmed that he would return to his role.
Created by Matt Groening, Futurama follows the adventures of Fry, a 20th-century birth boy who accidentally ends up in the year 3000 and has to adjust to his new life in the future with his colleagues and his best friend Bender. Bender is widely regarded as the show’s breakout character, with DiMaggio’s vocal performance credited for helping boost Futuramalong life and loyal fan base. DiMaggio’s reluctance to repeat his role was based on his belief that he and his co-stars were not properly compensated for their time and talent.
In a recent tweet, DiMaggio posted a few photos of the Bender artwork on the beach at the Esperanza Resort in Cabo, Mexico. The design contains the phrase “Esperanza Welcome to you, boss“along with a drawing of Bender’s head and chest. DiMaggio provides props to the staff at the resort and celebrates his upcoming return to the series. See photos below:
Fans rallied around DiMaggio’s decision to negotiate better pay, with many believing the show would not work without his presence. DiMaggio’s problems were centered around Hulu and their negotiations on Futurama‘s eighth season, without citing creative issues, and DiMaggio’s continued work on Groening’s other series, De-enchantment, continues unaffected. Many of the writers and actors to De-enchantment overlaps with Futuramawhere the shows share a similar style of humor and experiment with genre tropes.
In an industry that is becoming more and more corporate and less about the creatives behind it, DiMaggio was right in using his position to speak for himself and his teammates. While it may have seemed inevitable that DiMaggio would return, given his close affiliation with the character, it was a move that has led people to talk about how artists should be compensated for their work. Futurama‘s ingenious style and layered meaningful humor have given it a large fan base celebrating the show’s unique place in TV history, and with the new revival on the way, this legacy is still being written with all the right players in place.
Source: John DiMaggio
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