Big Mouth season 5 will have several changes when it arrives on Netflix. One of the biggest changes in the adult animated coming-of-age sitcom revolves around Missy. The character was originally voiced by Jenny Slate, but it was later announced that she's stepping down from the role.
Missy will be voiced by a new cast member moving forward in Big Mouth season 5. In August 2020, it was confirmed that Slate won't be voicing Missy anymore in the animated series. Reportedly, the character, who is mixed-race and half-Jewish, became more challenging to explore for the actress.
Missy's cultural and racial identity was said to be one of the reasons why Slate, who is white, stepped down from the show. Now, the character will be voiced by African-American writer-comedian Ayo Edebiri, who also serves as the writer on the animated series.
In fact, Edebiri already voiced Missy in the penultimate of season 4, when the character came to an epiphany about her identity. The creative team also discussed why they had to recast Slate in the Big Mouth season 5 and the future seasons.
In a report from Deadline, series creators Mark Levin and Andrew Goldberg explained the process and what would be their plan in the next installment. According to Levin, Slate had always questioned whether it's appropriate to portray Missy who "presents to the world as Black and identifies that way."
Goldberg, on the other hand, noted that casting Edebiri in the animated series "felt right" especially since she's already involved in the writers' room. She's already part of the conversation about how Missy will further evolve and has identified the character.
Aside from recasting Missy, the series creators also teased the planned stories in the upcoming Big Mouth season 5 -- which will focus on the political identity and advocacy of the characters. Some of the subjects that may be tackled include the COVID-19 pandemic and the Black Lives Matter movement.
These topics will the tackled through the animated show's comedic perspective, something that's already done in the show before. For instance, Missy's identity crisis has been tackled in season 4 and the sensitive subject was delivered through the program's lens.
Big Mouth season 5 official release date hasn't been set as of this writing. The current installment of the animated show was impacted by the pandemic though work is underway at the moment. The good news is that the fifth season won't be the final one as Netflix renewed the show through season 6 in July 2019.
