Another stroll through Central Park is being taken by Kristen Bell. In season three of the animated series on Apple TV+, the actress will voice the new character of Abby. Abby is the younger sister of Paige, voiced by Kathryn Hahn from Bad Moms.
The mixed-race daughter of Paige and Owen, Molly, was portrayed by Bell in the first season of Central Park.
As soon as Bell turned over the role in June 2020, she released a statement apologizing for the miscasting. Her statement read, "This is a time to acknowledge our complicity in this crime.
"She continued, "Playing Molly on Central Park shows a lack of awareness of my pervasive privilege. Casting an interracial character with a white actress undermines the specificity of the mixed-race and Black experience.
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In her words, "I am happy to let someone else take over this role, and I am looking forward to learning, growing, and doing my part to promote equality and inclusion." Molly Emmy Raver-Lampman was eventually recast for season two of The Umbrella Academy as Molly.
Jenny Slate made a similar decision about her voice role on Netflix's Big Mouth minutes before Bell made her decision about Central Park.
In an Instagram post, Slate wrote: "I have decided to no longer play the character of Missy on the animated show Big Mouth. In the beginning, I reasoned to myself that I was allowed to play Missy because Missy's mom is Jewish and white, just as I am.
But Missy is also Black, and Black characters on an animated show should be played by Black people."