ActorRob Loweis coming toThe Simpsons, and a new look at his character has been unveiled. PerEntertainment Weekly, Lowe’s voice will be featured in the next episode of the series, dubbed “The Very Hungry Caterpillars,” set to air on FOX this weekend. Lowe plays Peter, the cousin of Principal Seymour Skinner (Harry Shearer). The first look image showcases Peter with a venting Agnes Skinner (Tress MacNeille) while Seymour looks on solemnly from the side of the room.
The episode sees a swarm of caterpillars overtaking Springfield, leading to a lockdown with the elementary school students continuing their learning with video chat sessions. When Principal Skinner leaves his computer video camera on by mistake, Bart (Nancy Cartwright) observes the arrival of his cousin, Peter, and how that affects things at home.
Noting how it’s oddly taken over three decades to get Lowe involved withThe Simpsons, the actor said, “It’s rarer and rarer to find firsts for me in the business, and this is a big one. I feel like, finally, I’ve arrived. Actors always talk about how multi-dimensional their characters are; well, this character’s two-dimensional. He’s an actual cartoon, so that was a nice change of pace.”
“Voice acting is a whole different muscle — those muscles being your vocal cords, obviously,” Lowe also said of how doing this voiceover role was a new experience for him. “No matter how many times I do it, I’m always amazed at how different voice acting is from any other type of acting.”
Lowe is best known for his on-screen work, though he has dome some notable voiceover work, such as voicing Simba for theLion Kinganimated spinoff seriesThe Lion Guard. His other voiceover work includesMoonbeam City,Family Guy, andMune: Guardian of the Moon. TheParks and Recreationactor’s recent live-action credits include starring in the TV show9-1-1: Lone Starand the Netflix movieDog Gone.
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The Simpsons Is Still Going Strong
WithThe Simpsonsstill going strong on FOX, there will be time to get in other guest stars who still haven’t yet had the chance to join the show. But that’s certainly not to say that there haven’t been a great many notable guest stars on the show already over the past few decades. The series holds the world record for most guest stars in a single TV show, and to date, more than 950 guest stars have been featured. Some of othe other recent guest stars on the show include Aubrey Plaza, Drew Barrymore, Anna Faris, Kerry Washington, and Bill Eichner.
Back in January, the show was renewed for another two seasons, guaranteeing at least 36 total seasons ofThe Simpsonscoming to FOX. Maybe that means Lowe will get another chance to reprise his role as Peter, while many other guest stars will get a chance to come into the series.
The new episode ofThe Simpsonsfeaturing Rob Lowe, called “The Very Hungry Caterpillars,” will air on FOX on Sunday, May 7, at 8 p.m. ET/PT.
