Slate continued, “I acknowledge how my original reasoning was flawed, that it existed as an example of white privilege and unjust allowances made within a system of societal white supremacy, and that in me playing Missy, I was engaging in an act of erasure of Black people. Ending my portrayal of Missy is one step in a life-long process of uncovering the racism in my actions.”
Big Mouth co-creator Nick Kroll also released a statement at the time in which they promised to cast a Black actor for the role.
“After thoughtful discussion with us and our Black collaborators, Jenny Slate has decided, and we wholeheartedly agree, that Missy on Big Mouth should be voiced by a Black actor,” he wrote along with fellow creators Andrew Goldberg, Mark Levin, and Jennifer Flackett. “We sincerely regret our original decision to cast a white actor to voice a biracial character. We made a mistake, took our privilege for granted, and we’re working hard to do better moving forward.”
Edebiri celebrated the news on Twitter with some pretty solid proof that she’s the right person for the role in the form of a picture of Missy next to a picture of herself as a teen.
