The Simpsons wrapped up season 36 on May 19, on FOX with its finale, "Estranger Things," closing another exciting chapter in the show's history. While we're a little sad that Sunday nights won't be the same without Homer and his family, the good news is that one of the most iconic characters has a new voice actor. They took over the role after the original cast member announced their retirement and left The Simpsons with a heavy, but full heart, after 35 years.
In the finale, Bart and Lisa drift apart after they stop watching their favorite animation, Itchy and Scratchy. The cat-and-mouse duo, a farce of Tom and Jerry, suddenly becomes uncool after Maggie falls in love with them. The bigger point is that the separation caused future problems when Bart and Lisa became adults. When you think about it, Itchy and Scratchy are the "glue" that bonded them together, although it's a media production. Yet, lots of families and friends connect with their favorite mediums, so the concept isn't foreign.
Additionally, "Estranger Things" debuted the new voice of Milhouse Van Houten, "the blue-haired boy who is Bart's muse and best friend. In the episode, the character makes a brief appearance as an adult, but in those few seconds, Milhouse is the story's pinpoint.
From the season 36 finale and from this point forward, singer Kelly Macleod will become Milhouse's voice. She might not be Pamela Hayden, nor is she trying to be, but from this lifelong The Simpsons fan, she sounds very close to the original. We have yet to hear her ten-year-old version of the bespectacled kid with nerdish leanings, but there's not going to be much of a change.
Entertainment Weekly was the first to report Macleod's arrival as Milhouse. After a month, Mo Collins was confirmed to take over the schoolyard bully, Jimbo Jones, another character Hayden voiced during her tenure.
"Estranger Things" might have been Macleod's premiere of Milhouse, but it's not the first time she has appeared on The Simpsons. In season 33, episode 14, "Bart the Cool Kid", Macleod performed the track "Two Badges, One Mind." Grammy winner The Weeknd guest-starred as a child social media influencer, and actor Michael Rapaport as Mike Wegman.
As The Simpsons has been renewed for at least another four seasons, we'll hear a lot more from Macleod as Milhouse and see the remaining characters of Hayden gather new voices.