Finally, Harry Shearer has inked a brand new deal with The Simpsons. The voice of iconic animated characters Mr Burns, Smithers and Ned Flanders will remain with the show, despite previous disputes.
This news arguably contradicts the announcement Shearer made back in May, whereby he claimed his time with the show had come to an end. However, circumstances between both parties have seemingly changed.
It is understood that Shearer will earn approximately $300,000 per episode for the next four seasons. Fellow voice actors Yeardley Smith, Dan Castellaneta, Nancy Cartwright, Julie Kavner and Hank Azaria have also agreed the same deal.
In terms of Shearer signing his contract later than expected, this will not have an effect on the show's on-screen performance, despite many fans fearing that The Simpsons show would have to remove/replace the characters.
The 27th season of The Simpsons is set to run as smoothly as ever, with Shearer already contributing to seven holdover episodes before these contractual difficulties ensued.