The Simpsons is finally replacing one of its veteran voice actors and thankfully, no AI is involved. According to Entertainment Weekly, in the future the nefarious, beanie-wearing bully Jimbo Jones will be voiced by MadTV alum Mo Collins.
Collins, who spent six seasons on the raunchy ‘90s sketch comedy show, will replace Pamela Hayden who retired from the show in November after being with the show from the beginning. In addition to voicing Jimbo and an assortment of other characters, Hayden also voiced Bart Simpson sidekick Milhouse, but there have been no reports of Collins taking over those duties as well. In fact, EW clarified that a replacement voice actor for Milhouse will be announced later in the show’s 36th season, which is currently airing.
If you have any reservations about Collins stepping into the cartoon chaos of The Simpsons, then you must not be familiar with her game. This is the woman who played an overbearing mother who barked orders between grunts, a nasal-voiced Midwestern woman who sounded like starting a car engine, and a disoriented drug addict on MadTV. If that show was before your time (or past your bedtime), you’ve probably heard her as difficult Pawnee newscaster (and pain in Leslie Knope’s ass) Joan Callamezzo on Parks and Recreation. Safe to say, Jimbo Jones won’t miss a beat with Collins on board.
Collins replacing Hayden also shows that The Simpsons are yet to be in the business of replacing its voice actors with AI, a concern raised by Hank Azaria, who plays the second-most Simpsons characters of any actor.
Collins’s first appearance as Jimbo Jones will be on this week’s episode, “P.S. I Hate You,” which airs on Sunday, April 13.