King of the Hill is returning to a reboot on Hulu with much of the original cast and creatives, but when will it be released and what is confirmed so far?
The animated sitcom King of the Hill was created by Mike Judge (Silicon Valley) and Greg Daniels (The Office U.S.) in the '90s. King of the Hill follows propane salesman Hank Hill and his quirky family and friends living in Arlen, Texas.
The show ran for 13 seasons on Fox before ending in 2010, and it's now set to get a new lease of life on Hulu. The streamer ordered the revival in early 2023, with the original creators and most of the cast back on board for more episodes.
When Will the King of the Hill Reboot Release?
Following the resolution of the Hollywood writers' and actors' strikes by November 2023, King of the Hill co-creator Greg Daniels spoke to TVLine about the series' Hulu reboot, offering an update on its development and release.
Daniels first addressed the status of the reboot before the strike, noting how the team had "table-read two episodes" and "everybody was very excited:"
"We had table-read two episodes, and it was a lot of fun and everybody was very excited, and then we all went on strike."
At the time of the interview, the writers' strike had been wrapped up for over a month and the actors' labor dispute was just days away from its conclusion.
He added how the team was "rewriting the third... or the fourth episode" and still making adjustments to the premiere before noting how "the beginning of 2025" may be a possible premiere date for the reboot:
"[We're] rewriting the third episode or the fourth episode and getting notes on the first episode. Yeah, it’s chugging along, the beginning of 2025 [is a possible premiere date]."
An exact episode count for the revival has yet to be confirmed, but seasons of the original King of the Hill ranged from 12 to 25 episodes. Regardless, it is clear that, as of November, the focus was still on penning the early episodes.
As any hold-up caused by the actors' strike was resolved just days after this interview, Daniels' release prediction ought to be a rather accurate one.
So, the King of the Hill reboot will likely premiere on Hulu in early 2025, or perhaps slide a little further into next year depending on how development progresses.
Who Will Appear in the King of the Hill Reboot?
Even though 14 years have passed since King of the Hill ended for the first time, returning creators Mike Judge and Greg Daniels have managed to reunite the original voice cast to reprise their roles for the reboot.
Along with his writing duties, Judge will stick around as both propane salesman Hank Hill along with his high school friend and neighbor Boomhauer. His other friends including barber Bill, played by Stephen Root, and conspiracy theorist Dale are both expected to return for the reboot too.
Kathy Najimy will return as Hank's wife Peggy, with Lauren Tom back as her friend Minh and Ashley Gardner as meteorologist pal Nancy, who is married to Dale.
Additionally, Pamela Adlon will again play Hank and Peggy Hill's son Bobby (now aged several years thanks to a time jump) who is close friends with Minh's daughter Connie, also voiced by Lauren Tom.
The King of the Hill team will have one major obstacle to overcome with the reboot, as actor Johnny Hardwick, who voiced the popular Dale in the series, passed away in August 2023 after the revival was announced in January of the same year.
Hardwick was originally lined up to return for the King of the Hill reboot, and TVLine exclusively reported he had completed work on "a couple" of episodes for the Hulu continuation before his death.
Hulu and 20th Century Animation declined to comment on the report beyond its joint statement calling Hardwick "an incredibly beloved member" of the series' family and praising his "tremendous talent, brilliant humor, and friendship:"
“Johnny Hardwick was an incredibly beloved member of the King of the Hill family, whose tremendous talent, brilliant humor, and friendship will be deeply missed by all who were fortunate enough to work with him over the past 25 years. Our deepest condolences go out to his friends and family as we mourn the loss of one of the animation greats. His voice gave life to one of our most iconic characters, and he will be truly missed.”
Fans can likely look forward to hearing just a few more episodes with Hardwick's Dale when the reboot begins. But it's currently unclear whether the character will be cut altogether or the role will be recast beyond that point.
Speaking with TVLine, Daniels addressed the fate of Hank's Laotian neighbor, Kahn who was curiously missing from the revival cast list. Kahn was originally voiced by white actor Toby Hatt despite being an Asian character.
The co-creator clarified he is "not sure" whether Kahn will be back for the reboot, but if he returns, they will "most likely replace [Toby Huss'] voice:"
“[I am] not sure whether Kahn’s coming back. But I think we would most likely replace Toby’s voice for Kahn. Like, if we were casting today, we wouldn’t have cast him. But we cast it in 1997.”
The full cast as confirmed so far can be seen below:
- Mike Judge - Hank Hill & Boomhaur
- Kathy Najimy - Peggy Hill
- Pamela Adlon - Bobby Hill
- Stephen Reboot - Bill
- Johnny Hardwick - Dale
- Lauren Tom - Minh & Connie
- Ashley Gardner - Nancy
What Else Is Confirmed About the King of the Hill Reboot?
Speaking in an interview with Collider back in 2022 before the King of the Hill reboot was officially picked up by Hulu, co-creator Greg Daniels confirmed, "The idea is a time jump, yeah, so the characters are a bit older."
This followed word swirling around the internet that King of the Hill would take a 15-year time jump after the finale, effectively catching the series up to modern-day America given the last episode aired in 2010 and it will likely be back in 2025.
As such, the whole cast of characters is expected to be much older, which will have its strongest impact on younger characters such as Bobby Hill, who was just 13 in the original run but could now be as old as 28 in the reboot.
Via Deadline, 20th Television Animation's executive vice president Marci Proietto shared her excitement to "visit Arlen, Texas, once again" and bring "a whole new perspective to the original series:"
"I’m so lucky to have been a part of this show from the very beginning and couldn’t be more excited to visit Arlen, Texas, once again with Mike, Greg and Saladin, who together are bringing a whole new perspective to the original series."
She added how the reboot will be a "new iteration through the lens of 2023 America," suggesting it will dive into modern U.S. society:
"We all want to thank the fans for their overwhelming support because they helped make this happen, and I can’t wait to share this new iteration through the lens of 2023 America. In the words of our beloved Peggy Hill, Ho yeah!"
The first 13 seasons of King of the Hill are streaming now on Hulu.
