“I am the terror that flaps in the night! I’m the hair in the lens of your projector! I am Darkwing Duck!” Many variants of this catchphrase were uttered across 91 episodes of the classic ’90s cartoon, Darkwing Duck. The fifth official entry in The Disney Afternoon line-up captured the imagination of many a kid. As Drake Mallard by day and crimefighter by night, the beaked superhero even gave us another catchphrase, “let’s get dangerous!” Or about as dangerous as you could get for a kids’ cartoon. And while he did reappear to a degree in the DuckTales revival, we haven’t seen him on his own in a long time. All of that is about to change.
Darkwing Duck and the New Voice Cast
Darkwing Duck is officially coming back with a new series on Disney+. The principal cast list has been announced, with Mark Hamill taking up the role of the titular hero. He’ll be replacing Jim Cummings, who was the original voice of Darkwing. Hamill will be joined by Seth Rogen, taking the role of his sidekick, Launchpad McQuack. Launchpad was originally voiced in both DuckTales and Darkwing Duck by Terry McGovern. However, despite the character appearing in both shows, they’re considered two separate continuities. That’s according to Darkwing creator Tad Stones.
As for this new show, it actually may tie into the continuity of the original series of Darkwing Duck. The description reads, “For the last 35 years, Darkwing Duck has been trapped in his worst nightmare: an alternate world that’s never heard of his superhero exploits. Now a rebellious teen named Duckie who knows all about his heroic past shows up to pull this ego-fueled vigilante back into battle. Together, this unlikely duo will get dangerous to fight old enemies like Negaduck and Megavolt and reunite with allies Launchpad, Gosalyn and Morgana to save the entire universe.”
Original Creator has Positive Words
No official date has been given for when the series is going to premiere. There’s reason to be optimistic and excited, though. Tad Stones was consulted for creative input on the series and had this to say about it. “The new creative team has certainly amped up the action and comedy without forgetting the Disney heart. This series places DW in the literary tradition of Robin Hood, Zorro, and Sherlock Holmes, heroes whose lore has been reinterpreted by multiple creators in multiple mediums.” Sounds like some strong approval on his end.
The DuckTales reboot we mentioned earlier was a strong success for Disney. We’d like to see the same thing happen for Darkwing Duck. We’ll continue to keep you posted with updates about the webbed wonder.
