The Simpsons has made waves with some big returns in the most recent episode of Season 38, and fans might not have noticed that another character has been secretly recast. The Simpsons surprised fans with a new Treehouse of Horror Presents special this past weekend, and with it kept the surprises going even further by fully bringing back Apu to the series with a new voice actor in tow. But he wasn’t the only recast snuck into the episode, however, as there are two others that have been changed going forward.
Videos by ComicBook.com
The first of which is Apu’s wife Manjula, who also makes her return to the series with the latest episode of The Simpsons Season 38. Now voiced by Janina Gavankar (The Morning Show), she’s been brought back to the series alongside Apu and the Kwik-E-Mart as a recurring setting. But the wilder return also snuck into the episode has been Dr. Nick, who is now back in the series and voiced by Eric Lopez following Hank Azaria’s time with the role.
Dr. Nick Returns With New Voice Actor in The Simpsons Season 38
The Simpsons Season 38 “Treehouse of Horror Presents: The Revengening” largely takes place outside of the main series’ canon and within Apu’s nightmare, but it’s a way for the series to address Apu’s absence and recasting after not speaking in the series for nearly a decade. As The Simpsons is now more careful to have its voice stars reflecting the race of characters in the animated series, fans have seen many of the other characters being recast over the years such as Carl, Dr. Hibbert, Bumblebee Man and more. In the case of Bumbleeman, his former voice actor is now behind Dr. Nick as well.
Eric Lopez took over as the voice of Bumblebee Man beginning with The Simpsons Season 32 episode, “Now Museum, Now You Don’t” before being later replaced by Humberto Vélez (who famously voices Homer Simpson in the Spanish dub of the series) last year. But the latest episode now sees Lopez in the role of Dr. Nick, who was also voiced by Hank Azaria. In the wake of other changes for Azaria’s role with Apu and other characters, it seems he has further stepped back from taking on characters of other races in the time since.
What Does This Mean for Dr. Nick in The Simpsons?
But unlike Apu’s return that certifiably puts him back into the main canon of The Simpsons by the end of the episode, it’s a little more unclear for Dr. Nick’s case. His last speaking appearance under Azaria came during Season 31’s “Warrin’ Priests Part 2” in 2020, but he’s not exactly a character that had the same amount of prominence that Apu did before his own disappearance. He jokes in the episode that he’s been relegated to an island of forgotten gag for “eight seasons,” but the timeline for his actual appearance has been murky because of his being on the lower end of priorities.
Now that he’s been officially recast, it’s likely that The Simpsons is going to be able to use him for more of the quick gags that Dr. Nick was famous for in his previous appearances. But because he was reintroduced during this non-canon moment as a throwaway joke noting the fact he was basically forgotten, this also could be a joking goodbye. Are you hoping to see more of Dr. Nick in The Simpsons future? Let us know all of your thoughts about it in the comments!
More TV Shows
-
20th Television Animation
