Harry Shearer is Not Leaving THE SIMPSONS After All
Great news for fans of The Simpsons: Harry Shearer, the voice of Mr. Burns, Ned Flanders, Principal Skinner, Smithers, and more, will remain with the show. Seven weeks ago, Shearer tweeted that he'd be leaving the show after 26 years, which caused a wave of sadness to pass through the fan community. It turns out that it was all due to a misunderstanding — Shearer wanted the ability to do other projects during his off time, and producer Al Jean requested work from Shearer during a time in which Shearer was supposed to have a five week break from the show. Jean has since apologized (read his tweets below) and EW reports that Shearer has signed on to return to the show once again.
Shearer joins original cast members Dan Castellaneta, Yeardley Smith, Julie Kavner, Nancy Cartwright, and Hank Azaria in signing contracts for four more seasons of the show, in which they'll be paid around $300,000 per episode. Not bad for voice work! The show began production on its twenty-seventh season without him, but because he was able to work out his return deal quickly, "his temporary absence behind the scenes will not be significantly felt on the new season."
Here's Jean's clarification of what went down: