How did Futurama have so many celebrity guest appearances?
I've been going back and watching earlier seasons, which - I thought - had a smaller budget and less recognition. But after taking a closer look at the credits I realized there's a lot of celebrity heads that are voiced by the actual celebrities. The star trek episode actually had the full original cast - and those weren't bit parts! I get that the show's a social commentary, but wouldn't it have been easier to get sound alikes? Is there a story behind the show's giant special appearances list?
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by that point Simpsons kind of had everyone who is anyone on to do voicework so i imagine it was just as simple for Futurama
This is answer number 1. The guy from the Simpsons asks you do to voice work, which I have to imagine isn't as much of a pain in the ass as being filmed.
I think answer 1b is they are also getting paid for said work on a show by a legendary creator.
1c is they are usually themselves, which means there's no confusion as to who the person voicing the character is. It's great for their brand.
Not to mention Futurama has its own high profile people that other celebrities would probably enjoy working with, and probably had their own pull.
Also, they originally aired on 20th Century Fox, which seems to have a group of famous people that will pop on to random shows for cameos. I also think it’s easier for celebrities to do cameos as voice overs, since they can be recorded at any studio - even home studios.