Good News, Everyone: John DiMaggio Is Officially Returning As Bender For The ‘Futurama’ Revival

After nearly a month, “Bendergate” is at an end. In early February, Hulu had some good news and some bad. The good: Futurama, Matt Groening’s beloved sci-fi animated comedy, was being revived at the streamer. The bad: Not everyone was coming back. The lone hold-out was John DiMaggio, who voiced Bender, the alcoholic, pimpmobile-loving robot. But, as per The Hollywood Reporter, after weeks of negotiation, he’s finally on board.

— John DiMaggio (@TheJohnDiMaggio) March 1, 2022

DiMaggio’s main sticking point was that the entire cast, not just him, was about being underpaid for their efforts. “I don’t think that only I deserve to be paid more. I think the entire cast does,” he wrote in a statement in mid-February.

News that DiMaggio would not be returning and would likely be replaced drove social media into a frenzy. DiMaggio himself seemed to be as livid as everyone else. But now that nightmare is over. Details about what tipped the scales have not been made public, but DiMaggio — whose vocal work can also be heard on the likes of Kim Possible, Samurai Jack, Teen Titans, and more — seemed ecstatic in a statement he released on the matter.

“I’M BACK, BABY! So damn grateful for the love and support of fans and colleagues alike during this whole time (especially my wife, Kate), and I cannot wait to get back to work with my Futurama family … #Bendergate is officially over, so put it on the back of a shelf behind Xmas decorations, or maybe in that kitchen drawer with all of the other crap you put in there like old unusable crazy glue, or maybe even put it in a jar you save farts in. Whatever floats your boat, I don’t care, you get the picture. I’M BACK, BABY! BITE MY SHINY METAL ASS!”

The Futurama revival will include 20 new episodes, with production to begin later this year. It will join other Hulu animated revivals, among them Animaniacs, which came back in late 2020.