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Title: 'King of the Hill' (and Dale Gribble) Return To TV After 15 Years

Link: https://entertainment.slashdot.org/story/25/0...

Mike Judge always seemed to have secret geek sympathies. He co-created the
HBO series Silicon Valley, as well as the movie Office Space (reviewed in
1999 by Slashdot contributor Jon Katz). Now comes the word that besides
rebooting Buffy the Vampire Slayer - and an animated scifi/action/horror film
called Predator: Killer of Killers - Hulu is also relaunching Judge's
animated series King of the Hill on August 4th. And Cinemablend notes they
took great pains to ensure the inclusion of internet-loving neighbor Dale
Gribble despite the death of voice actor Johnny Hardwick: Co-creators Mike
Judge and Greg Daniels joined the cast of returning voice actors for a
revealing Q&A at ATX Fest while also revealing longtime cast member Toby
Huss took over the role of Dale Gribble... Hardwick passed away in August
2023 at 64, with fans and co-stars paying tribute soon after. It was revealed
at the time that he'd recorded some audio for the new season, but it was
clear that another actor would be needed to fill those intimidating and
conspiracy-obsessed shoes. Among other characters, Huss provided the voice of
Cotton Hill and Kahn Sr. in the O.G. run, and feels to me like a natural fit
to take over as Dale. And he sounds humbled to have been given the task,
telling the ATX Fest crowd: "Johnny was one-of-a-kind and a wonderful fellow.
I'm not trying to copy Johnny...I guess I'm trying to be Johnny. He laid down
a really wonderful goofball character...he had a lot of weird heart to him
and that's a credit to Johnny. So all I'm trying to do is hold on to his Dale-
ness. We love our guy Johnny and it's so sad that he's not here...." I can
already hear Dale himself questioning why he sounds different, and whether or
not the government has replaced him with a lizard creature or some other
sentient organism... In the immediate aftermath of Johnny Hardwick's death,
the word was that the actor had filmed a couple of episodes' worth of
material for the Hulu revival, but Mike Judge went on the record at ATX Fest
to reveal that initial assessment undershot things entirely. From the voice
of Hank Hill himself: "Johnny Hardwick is in six episodes. He's still going
to be in the show." Hulu uploaded the new opening credits to YouTube eight
days ago - and it's already been viewed 2.1 million times, attracting 55,000
upvotes and 7,952 comments... Long-time Slashdot reader theodp shared the
official blurb describing the new show: After years working a propane job in
Saudi Arabia to earn their retirement nest egg, Hank and Peggy Hill return to
a changed Arlen, Texas to reconnect with old friends Dale, Boomhauer and
Bill. Meanwhile, Bobby is living his dream as a chef in Dallas and enjoying
his 20s with his former classmates Connie, Joseph and Chane.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

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