Kerry Washington is joining “The Simpsons”.
The actress is starring in the show as Rayshelle Peyton, Bart’s teacher, and will be a permanent replacement for Ms. Krabappel.
Marcia Wallace, who voiced the character, passed away in 2013; since then, the role has been filled by guest teachers including Willem Dafoe’s Jack Lassen and Sofia Vergara’s Carol Berrera, Entertainment Weekly reported.
Ned Flanders even became Bart’s teacher at one point.
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Ms. Peyton handles Bart Simpson. Sunday!!!!!! Can’t wait! https://t.co/LxPfnbdXty
— kerry washington (@kerrywashington) April 21, 2022
Mrs. Peyton will be “very thoughful, highly capable and rather unfiltered,” and will make her debut in the upcoming episode “My Octopus And A Teacher” on Sunday.
“She’s a great teacher,” Washington told EW of the character. “But like all the best teachers, she knows that her students have just as much to teach her as she has to teach them. And teaching Bart is a job filled with growth opportunities.”
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Co-executive producer Carolyn Omine, who wrote the episode, shared of permanently replacing Mrs. Krabappel: “I don’t know why we’ve been putting it off.
“I do miss our dear Marcia, and I think there was a little sadness and reluctance to do it, but it’s been nine years.
“We would have a conversation at least once a year, maybe every other year. We couldn’t really decide, and we couldn’t really agree. There just wasn’t the inspired thought — until we came upon this.”
“I’m just a huge ‘Simpsons’ fan!” Washington gushed. “What an extraordinary legacy to be a part of! And I thought the idea of playing Bart’s teacher was so funny. I used to be a teacher in NYC public schools. And my mother is a retired teacher. Teaching is, to me, a sacred profession. I could only imagine the laughs involved in teaching Bart.”
