How Will King of the Hill’s Revival Address Luanne and Lucky?

King of the Hill has been officially announced to return for new episodes with a special revival coming to Hulu, and one of the immediately pressing questions of this new series is how the team will address the absence of Luanne and Lucky, previously voiced by the late Brittany Murphy and Tom Petty. King of the Hill was one of Fox’s biggest animated sitcoms during its initial run several years ago, and much of that was due to the strength of the main cast. But unfortunately in the years since the series came to an end, there have been several unfortunate losses in that regard. 

King of the Hill is now being developed to return to Hulu with new episodes, and there has yet to be a confirmation of how this new series will approach its premiere. There are two major ways this could turn out. The new episodes could just pick right back up with the series where it ended, but place it in the modern day much like the recent revival of Mike Judge’s other series, Beavis and Butt-Head. The second is to age up the characters to move it into the modern day. Regardless of either option, the revival’s going to need to address Luanne and Lucky’s absence. 

What Happens to Luanne and Lucky in King of the Hill? 

Lucky might have been a later addition to the series, but Luanne Platter was the heart of the series’ original premise. Moving in with the Hill family following her mother’s incarceration played a major role in giving the conservative Hank more to react to. Brittany Murphy’s performance was such an integral aspect in the series’ success, it’s hard to imagine that they would recast her. It’s an option that’s on the table, sure, but not a great one. 

That’s if the new episodes pick up from the end of the classic run. Luanne and Lucky’s absence would have to be written into the series, because it’s hard to imagine that they would recast both Murphy and Petty. At the same time, their relationship was a huge factor in many of the later seasons’ episodes. But there’s a way around this. If the new episodes age up the cast, then it’s possible for the series to write Luanne and Lucky’s passing as something that happened in the time since the classic episodes. 

It would certainly be a sad result, but would also open up a direct connection between the new series and the classic one. If their daughter Gracie moves in with the Hill family, then it would be just like it was when Luanne moved in all those years ago. It would unfortunately be the most elegant solution to an unenviable situation. 

How do you think the new King of the Hill episodes should address Brittany Murphy and Tom Petty’s absence? Let us know all of your thoughts about it in the comments! You can even reach out to me directly about all things animated and other cool stuff @Valdezology on Twitter!