Johnny Hardwick has completed work on a couple of upcoming Hulu episodes king of the hill alive before his death Earlier this month, TVLine learned.
Hardwicke voiced Hank’s best friend/neighbor, chain-smoker, conspiracy-obsessed Dale Gribble in all 258 episodes of the previous Fox series. It’s still unclear if another actor will be brought in to finish what Hardwicke started in the revival, which is set to bow in 2024.
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Representatives for 20th Television Animation and Hulu declined to comment for this story, other than issuing this joint statement: “Johnny Hardwicke was an incredibly likable member of the… king of the hill The family, whose immense talent, wonderful sense of humor, and friendship of everyone he has been fortunate enough to work with over the past 25 years will be missed. Our deepest condolences to his friends and family and we are sorry for the loss of one of the greats in animation. His voice gave life to one of our most iconic characters, and he will be truly missed.”
As previously reported, police were called to Hardwicke’s home in Texas on August 8 for a welfare check and discovered his body. The cause of death is unknown, although foul play has been ruled out.
king of the hillwhich aired on Fox for 13 seasons, from 1997 to 2009, focused on propane salesman Hank Hill and his family and friends in Arlene, Texas. Hulu’s current revival Back in the fictional suburb of Texas.
In addition to Hardwicke, original stars announced as returning for the continuation include Mike Judge (Hank and Boomhauer), Kathy Najimy (Hank’s wife Peggy) and Pamela Adlon (Hank’s son Bobby), along with Stephen Root as Hank Bell’s barber. Ashley Gardner is also on board as Dale’s wife Nancy, as is Lauren Tom as Minh’s neighbor as well as Minh’s daughter Connie.
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