One of my favorite animated shows explicitly for an adult audience is Big Mouth. Drawn in by its silly yet semi-nostalgic, relatable premise and a stacked cast, I stayed pretty on top of each season until 2020. Lost in the fray of the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic and a turbulent election season, I forgot about the show. However, with the addition of Ayo Edebiri and now Megan Thee Stallion I feel the show calling to me once more. That’s the power these women have on me.
Let’s back up a bit. Edebiri actually joined the show three years ago. In 2020, Jenny Slate announced her departure from the role of Missy so a Black actress could voice the character. Derided by some, this cast change was very important. Not only is voice acting very white and celebrity-focused, but as the show went on, it began to more intimately explore the character’s relationship with Blackness. Despite existing as a biracial person with a Black father (played by Jordan Peele) and white mother (played by Chelsea Peretti), the show hadn’t addressed this much in early seasons. Slate is a phenomenal actress and Missy is my favorite character (y’all have no idea how hard her obsession with Mesopotamia hits for me), but we didn’t need that from her at all.
Before taking on the mantle of the adorkable Missy, not many people, including myself, knew of Edebiri. However, her comedy writing and acting earned her some attention and Edebiri joined the show, serving as a consulting producer for Big Mouth and the voice of Missy. Since then, Edebiri has co-starred, guest-starred, written, and produced so many other high-profile projects—things like The Bear, I Think You Should Leave with Tim Robinson, Bottoms, and so much more.
Falling in love with Edebiri’s work while on a break from Big Mouth has had me itching to come back. However, the final push to get me to revisit the show appeared in the season seven teaser trailer.
Here, none other than rapper, singer, and actress Megan Thee Stallion appears in a big mouth in the sky in hormone monstress form. She smoothly slides down a long tongue joining her fellow hormone monsters voice by Maya Rudolph and Nick Kroll. Clearly huge fans, all three monsters (Kroll voices both Maury and Rick) fawn over the H-Town hottie. Can we blame them? Other than jiggle physics and the premiere date of October 20, this trailer didn’t reveal anything more. I don’t need it though. (This doesn’t mean I won’t cross my fingers for a song penned and performed by Megan!) Between Edebiri and Megan, I’m already fired up to catch up!
(featured image: Netflix, FX on Hulu, and A24)
