The Role I Was Born to Play

Summary

Karen Gillan is the first actor from the main Guardians of the Galaxy cast to be featured on The Simpsons, and she is excited to play Groundskeeper Willie’s love interest.
Gillan’s Scottish heritage aligns with the stereotypical portrayal of Groundskeeper Willie, and she can’t wait for fans to see her embrace her Scottish roots in the show.
Gillan’s career has been diverse, with roles in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Jumanji franchise, and her own self-directed film. She continues to take on a range of projects both in front of and behind the camera.

Somewhat surprisingly, among the hundreds of stars to have guested on The Simpsons over the last decade, Karen Gillan will be the first actor from the main Guardians of the Galaxy cast to have been welcomed into the fold of the Springfield family. Gillan celebrated her upcoming appearance with a post on her Instagram account, announcing the “role I was born to play.”

The Scottish actress found great success early in her career, gaining worldwide attention for playing Amy Pond, the assistant to Matt Smith’s Doctor in sci-fi series Doctor Who. Gillan’s connection with the show actually started two years before landing her breakout role, when she starred in the David Tennant-led episode “The Fires of Pompeii”, and it certainly set her up in the fantasy genre that would become her home again playing Nebula in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Unable to contain her excitement about finally entering The Simpsons’ Hall of Fame, Gillan said in her post:

“I can finally announce the role I was born to play. That’s right folks, I’m Groundskeeper Willie’s new Scottish love interest in The Simpsons. SO honoured to join this legendary show!!!! Episode airs this weekend!”

Groundskeeper Willie has been a staple of The Simpsons from the start of the show back in 1989. As the Scottish groundskeeper of Springfield Elementary School, Willie is voiced by Dan Castellaneta, and has always been portrayed as a stereotypical parody of the Scots. In many ways, this taps into Gillan’s own Scottish heritage, and she clearly cannot wait for fans to see her at her most Scottish in the heightened reality of The Simpsons. The episode entitled “AE Bonny Romance” will air on Fox on December 3 on Fox, and will be added to Disney+ in international locations.

Karen Gillan Has Branched Out as an Actress

While adding an appearance in The Simpsons to her resume seems to have been on Gillan’s wish list for some time, her talents have incorporated a wide variety of big and small screen roles. Outside the MCU, where she has made seven live-action appearances as Nebula and voiced the character in What If…?, Gillan has demonstrated her versatility in movies like the western In a Valley of Violence, techo-thriller The Circle, and Netflix comedy, The Bubble. She has also been part of the Jumanji franchise since the reboot/sequel Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle in 2017, a part she could return to if the fourth instalment ever gets off the ground.

However, Gillan has not only stuck to acting, having also tried her hand behind the camera in the self-directed drama The Party’s Just Beginning, where she played a young woman grappling with the loss of her best friend.

Next for Gillan is Sleeping Dogs, an adaptation of E. O. Chirovici’s novel “The Book of Mirrors” starring Russell Crowe, and Mike Flanagan’s The Life of Chuck, based on the story by Stephen King, for which she joins a stellar cast including Tom Hiddleston, Mark Hamill and Chiwetel Ejiofor.

As for The Simpsons, the new series has continued to deliver the kind of irreverent humor that has kept the show popular for almost 35 years. While some have wondered if it is time for the Matt Groening show to call it a day, as long as the franchise continues to attract its big name stars and deliver the ratings, it is not too much to believe it will be celebrating more milestone anniversaries in years to come.

The Simpsons

Release Date December 17, 1989

Cast Dan Castellaneta, Julie Kavner, Nancy Cartwright, Yeardley Smith, Hank Azaria, Harry Shearer

Genres Comedy

Seasons 35

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