In the wake of Justin Roiland's departure from several positions after serious allegations were brought against him earlier in the year, a replacement has been found for one of his voice acting roles on his show Solar Opposites.
Premiering in May of 2020, Hulu's Solar Opposites follows the misadventures of a family of aliens that crash land on Earth while fleeing the destruction of their home planet and proceed to adapt and enjoy their new home to varying degrees. Initially made for Fox Broadcasting, the show was eventually sold to Hulu, where it finally premiered. The show had a bit of a roadblock to overcome early, needing to prove to audiences that Solar Opposites isn’t just a Rick and Morty clone. However, the show managed to get through that and was received favorably by fans and critics.
More recently, the show hit another stumbling block when its creator and prominent voice talent Roiland was dropped from Solar Opposites and Koala Man by Hulu after serious allegations were made against him in a felony domestic abuse case. This led to Roiland being removed from all active projects, with replacements needed for the myriad voice roles he filled in his shows. As revealed in the Solar Opposites season 4 trailer and The Hollywood Reporter, one of those roles have been filled, as Legion star Dan Stevens takes on the role of Korvo, the more reluctant Earth visitor of the Solar Opposites cast.
The casting was officially revealed via the show’s YouTube channel, with a cleverly crafted plot justification for the switch, as Korvo is struck in the throat by a metal dart and has his voice altered in the process of repairing it, with other characters commenting on the change with some meta humor. The shift will surely settle fan anxiety about the show’s future, as Solar Opposites has been renewed for a fifth season by Hulu well before the fourth season’s premiere. Stevens, who most recently worked on Welcome to Chippendales for Hulu, already seems quite comfortable in the role, as do many fans in the YouTube comments.
For his part, Roiland seems unlikely to return to any of his previously well-received roles despite the initial allegations not making it past the courthouse. This is partly because the aftermath of the accusations revealed that Roiland had a long history of problematic behavior that had yet to be addressed. “I have always known that these claims were false — and I never had any doubt that this day would come,” Roiland commented after the case against him was set aside. “I’m thankful that this case has been dismissed but, at the same time, I’m still deeply shaken by the horrible lies that were reported about me during this process. Most of all, I’m disappointed that so many people were so quick to judge without knowing the facts, based solely on the word of an embittered ex trying to bypass due process and have me ‘canceled.’”
While the case was indeed dismissed, many quickly noted that this and other statements by Roiland denied the dismissed charges but sidestepped other problematic behavior that had come to light in the aftermath. As such, fans must get used to the new voice talent on Solar Opposites and wait to see how the voice talent for his other popular shows, such as Rick and Morty, is handled.
Solar Opposites is currently available for streaming on Hulu, with the fourth season airing on August 14th.
Source: Hulu, The Hollywood Reporter