King Of The Hill Star Talks Giving Up Voicing Kahn And ‘Moving Forward’ While Also Taking Over As Fan-Favorite Dale

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The beloved TV series “King of the Hill” is returning with some new voices in its cast. Unfortunately, the original voice actor for Dale, Johnny Hardwick, passed away during production. To fill his shoes, Toby Huss, who previously voiced Kahn, has been chosen as a replacement. Meanwhile, the role of Kahn will be taken over by Ronny Chieng, an Asian actor. Despite this significant change, Toby Huss expressed his happiness about stepping into the new role.

I had a chat with the cast of “King of the Hill” at San Diego Comic-Con and inquired from Huss if there were any mixed emotions about handing over the character from Kahn. Without a moment’s pause, the voice actor, who had previously lent his voice to the character as well as others throughout the entirety of the previous series, shared his reasons for not being upset about letting go of the role:

Indeed, the character I created years ago is intriguing to me, and I enjoy working on it. However, back in the late 90s and early 2000s, we didn’t delve much into cultural questions, but that’s changing now, which I think is fantastic. With this show, we’re not only asking those questions but also providing answers. One of the answers we arrived at was that Toby shouldn’t play that role anymore. We made adjustments to accommodate this, and I’m glad we’re progressing culturally in some way.

The animated show “King of the Hill” followed a similar path as many other animated series by featuring white actors portraying characters of diverse cultural backgrounds, sparking ongoing discussions about representation in the animation industry in 2025. In essence, the series’ approach and casting choices served to express its stance on this important issue.

Toby Huss graciously moved aside, leaving the position open for someone else to take. Now, he’s voicing Dale in the second half of the latest season, which can be accessed with a Hulu subscription. Lauren Tom, known for her roles as Connie and Minh, shared her thoughts on Huss stepping back from Kahn and praised him for his positive attitude throughout the process.

I simply wanted to mention how impressive it was that Toby demonstrated such grace by understanding that concept and stepping aside, making it truly delightful to know he’s part of our family helping with Dale. It all just seemed so logical.

The scenario became clear, and just as King of the Hill determined how to handle Bobby’s voice change as he grew up, the show devised a method to involve one of its key voice actors in the ongoing storyline. This move also established a pattern for future casting decisions if new characters should happen to join the series.

More On King Of The Hill

Mike Judge, the creator of King of the Hill, along with showrunner, revealed a significant alteration they made to the character Bobby as an adult. Specifically, they decided to portray him as more responsible and less mischievous compared to his younger years.

This brings up the question of how John Redcorn might be handled, following the passing of voice actor Jonathan Joss. It remains uncertain whether King of the Hill will recruit a new voice actor to portray the character, or if they’ll choose to exclude him like they’ve done with other characters whose voice actors have passed away.

There’s been a diverse response online about the voice choices for “King of the Hill.” Essentially, people are finding it hard to accept Ronny Chieng as Kahn because they feel his voice doesn’t closely resemble the original one, and this change is quite noticeable for long-time fans. This phenomenon isn’t unique to animation – whenever a new actor steps into an established role, comparisons are inevitable.

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From a different perspective, I think that during the latest episodes of “King of the Hill,” Dale’s voice, performed by Toby Huss, seems to align more closely with the original character version. It’s interesting how voice acting can evolve like this, as it’s not uncommon for voices to adapt over time due to age.

Instead of arguing against it, I prefer to go along with what seems best for the actors, as long as Huss is content. frankly speaking, it took me some time (with help from ‘Rick and Morty’) to reach this conclusion, so I can empathize if others might need more time to adapt.

The current season of “King of the Hill” can be streamed on Hulu at this time. I’m excited to find out if additional episodes will be released, so I’m hoping for an update on that front shortly.

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2025-08-13 04:38