‘Family Guy’ Voice Actor Mike Henry Stepping Down From ‘Cleveland Brown’ Role

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Voice actor Mike Henry said Friday on Twitter that he no longer will voice the Cleveland Brown character on Fox’s animated Family Guy.

Henry, who is white, has voiced the African-American Brown since the show’s inception in 1999. He also voiced the character and his son, Rallo Tubbs, on the spinoff, The Cleveland Show, which ran for four years on Fox.

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Henry was a voice on Family Guy since its 1999 debut. He also voiced Latina maid Consuela on the animated series.

The announcement comes in the wake of two other animated series recasting mixed-race who had been voiced by white actors: Jenny Slate on Big Mouth and Kristen Bell on Central Park.

“It’s been an honor to play Cleveland on Family Guy for 20 years. I love this character, but persons of color should play characters of color. Therefore, I will be stepping down from the role,” Henry wrote.

There have been no other reactions yet from the show producers or cast members.

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