Mike Henry will no longer be the voice Family man Cleveland Brown character, becoming the last white actor to walk away from playing a colored character in an animated series.
“It has been an honor playing Cleveland in Family Guy for 20 years,” he announced on Twitter on Friday. “I love this character, but people of color should play characters of color. Therefore, I will leave office. ”
Henry has voiced the character since Family man debuted in 1999 and in the spin-off The Cleveland Show, which ran from 2009 to 2013.
Several other actors have announced this week that they will no longer voice black characters as Black Lives Matter protests continue across the country. Episodes of 30 rocks and Scrubs which showed that the black-faced actors were removed from streaming services earlier in the week, and on Wednesday, Jenny Slate announced that she would no longer be voicing a black character in Big Mouth.
“At the beginning of the show, I reasoned with myself that it was permissible for me to play ‘Missy’ because her mother is Jewish and white, like me,” Slate wrote on Instagram. “But ‘Missy’ is also black, and black characters in an animated show should be played by black people.”
Kristen Bell also announced Wednesday that she would not be playing a biracial character in the upcoming series. Central Park and that the paper would be recast.
“Launching a mixed-race character with a white actress undermines the specificity of the mixed race and the African-American experience,” said Bell. “It was wrong and we in the Central Park team are committed to doing it right. I am happy to hand over this role to someone who can give a much more accurate representation and I will commit to learning, growing and doing my part for equality and inclusion. “
The show’s team released a statement saying they regretted choosing a white woman in the role and that Bell would continue to play a role in the show, but was no longer voicing the character.
