Family Guy Season 19 Premiere Explains Who Can Understand Stewie

Family Guy is revealing who can understand Stewie in the Season 19 premiere. TVLine has a clip from the new season where the family actually registers what the fan-favorite character says for the first time. “Stewie’s First Word” is the title of the premiere and it’s shaping up to be an occasion. One of the charms relative to early episodes in the series is how strange the dynamic between Brian and Stewie could be. They were off in their own little world as a B-plot to most episodes while the Griffins navigated their own shenanigans. But, it seems like things are about to change for one of America’s favorite families in Season 19. In the past, Brian was the only one in that exclusive club (and sometimes Chris), but they’re going to have a whole lot more people in on the conversation if Stewie keeps progressing.

“I don’t get it, Stewie, you’ve been talking forever,” Brian wonders during the clip. “Why did everyone suddenly understand you now?” The baby replies, “I don’t know. I was feeling such intense emotion in the moment, and that one word somehow just burst through.”

Series executive producer Rich Appel told TVLine more about Stewie’s communication abilities in 2015. He explained, “Within the family, Brian and sometimes Chris [always understand him]. But to the rest of the outside world — Peter and Lois and Peter’s friends — it’s important that they can’t.”

Yesterday, the FOX staple unveiled Cleveland Brown’s new voice as the changes keep on rolling. Mike Henry will no longer provide the mellow sounds of the character and Arif Zahir is stepping into the recording booth as a substitute. The summer has centered a lot of conversations about representation in animation and having actors of color portray diverse characters. Zahir was ecstatic to step into the role and told EW about it.

“Firstly, I’m eternally grateful to have received this once in a lifetime opportunity,” Zahir said. “When I heard that Mike Henry was stepping down from the role of Cleveland Brown — my favorite cartoon character of all time — I was shocked and saddened, assuming we’d never see him again. When I learned I would get to take over the role? Overabundant gratitude. To Mike, you created something truly special and I promise I will do my absolute best to honor your legacy. To [executive producer] Rich Appel, [executive producer] Alec Sulkin and [creator] Seth MacFarlane, thank you for this incredible gift. And to the millions of fans who love this show, I promise not to let you down.”

Are you excited for a new season of Family Guy? Let us know in the comments!