Pamela Adlon, the Emmy-nominated voice behind Bobby Hill, expressed a strong desire to continue portraying the character for the remainder of her career, drawing a parallel to Casey Kasem's long tenure as Shaggy from Scooby-Doo. Adlon has voiced the character for 15 seasons across the original run of King of the Hill and its recent Hulu revival.
Adlon shared that the success of the revival was evident from an early reunion and table read in San Francisco, where the audience's enthusiastic reaction prompted co-creators Mike Judge and Greg Daniels to move forward with the series. She emphasized that the revival was not a mere attempt to capitalize on nostalgia but a project born from a genuine desire to bring the show back in the right way.
Finding Bobby's Voice
A significant challenge in revisiting Bobby for the revival was establishing the voice of a now 21-year-old version of the character. Adlon explained that she needed to make a deliberate choice for the voice that would be sustainable for her performance and feel authentic to the character's progression, while also satisfying long-time fans. She described the adult Bobby's voice as being very close to her own, noting that it's a subtle difference that allows for continued emotional resonance.
Favorite Storylines
Over the show's extensive history, Bobby Hill has been at the center of numerous memorable storylines. Adlon cited several favorites, including the Season 3 episode "Love Hurts and So Does Art," where Bobby develops gout. She also fondly recalled the Season 4 episode featuring Bandit the raccoon, and early season episodes like "Wematanye" and the one with Willie Nelson. Other notable episodes mentioned include Bobby's trip to Arizona with Carl Reiner and the New Orleans-set "A Beer Can Named Desire," which featured David Herman as Bobby's cousin.
Adlon also noted that fans increasingly recognize her for her voice work as Bobby Hill, sometimes even more than her live-action roles. She finds the connection with Bobby's fans to be particularly special. While expressing enthusiasm for the character's future, Adlon hopes to have more input into the writing process, suggesting that she would like to be involved in discussions about where Bobby's story goes next, without rushing his development. She agreed with the notion that seeing Bobby eventually become a father would bring the show full circle, but added, "But let me just be 21 for a while."
King of the Hill's 15th season is currently available for streaming on Hulu.