Pamela Hayden is opening up about her exit from the long-running animated series The Simpsons.
The 70-year-old actress has primarily voiced Millhouse, one of Bart’s friends, for the past 35 years, alongside other characters like Jimbo Jones, Ned Flanders’ son Rod, Chief Wiggum’s wife Sarah, and Lisa’s friend Janey Powell.
Her final episode airs TONIGHT (November 24), which is “Treehouse of Horror Presents: Simpsons Wicked This Way Comes.”
As her time on the show comes to an end, Pamela is revealing why she is retiring from the show and what’s next for her.
Keep reading to find out more…
“How many actors can say they’ve worked on a show for 35 years straight?” she told Variety. “That alone is amazing. But it was time for me to devote my time to other creative endeavors that I have, like filmmaking. It was a tough decision, but I feel like it was the right one.”
“It’s just not like anything I’ve ever worked on,” Pamela continued. “It’s a once-in-a-lifetime job on a once-in-a-lifetime show. But being an actor, I think you’re kind of used to taking risks. That’s the kind of person I am. I’m not about playing things safe. And there were other things I wanted to do. I think you throw it against the wall and see what sticks.”
Coming up for Pamela is her documentary, Jailhouse to Millhouse, which shows her upbringing. The doc has hit the festival circuit.
In addition, she co-wrote the book and lyrics for a musical she’s been developing.
“I’d like to get that up, but frankly, the way theater has been going since COVID, is not great,” she shared. “I haven’t been successful getting the show up in New York. So we’ll see what happens.”
