Don't worry everyone, Bender's futur(ama) is looking bright.
After John DiMaggio's delayed contract negotiations had fans questioning his character's fate, the voice actor revealed that he will be returning as Bender for Futurama‘s 20-episode revival on Hulu.
"I'M BACK, BABY!" DiMaggio said in a statement on March 1. "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," he continued, "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 A––!"
Ahhhh, he really is back.
DiMaggio will now officially be joining other returning voice actors including Tress MacNeille, Billy West, Katey Sagal, Maurice LaMarche, Lauren Tom, Phil LaMarr and David Herman.
The news first broke back in February that DiMaggio might not return. "Just to be clear, I don't think that only I deserve to be paid more. I think the entire cast does," DiMaggio wrote in a tweet on Feb. 16. "Negotiations are a natural part of working in show business. Everyone has a different strategy & different boundaries. Their ‘price.' Some accept offers, some hold their ground."
Futurama—which follows a pizza delivery boy who accidentally freezes himself for 1,000 years—aired for four seasons from 1999–2003 on Fox and was later revived by Comedy Central for an additional three seasons from 2008–2013.
Could we imagine a Futurama without the shiny little robot?
In the words of Turanga Leela, "At the risk of sounding negative, no."
Futurama is available to stream on Hulu and Prime Video.