TheGremlinsfranchise is expanding with the new animated seriesGremlins: Secrets of the Mogwai, putting Gizmo is front and center as the show delves into the origins of the iconic character. In the originalGremlinsmovie and its sequel,Gremlins 2: The New Batch, the voice of Gizmo was provided byHowie Mandel. WhenGremilns: Secrets of the Mogwaiwas in production, it was revealed that Mandel would not be reprising the role of Gizmo. The role has been taken over by A. J. LoCascio, whose other work includes convincingly voicing Michael J. Fox’s Marty McFly character inBack to the Future: The Game.
Joe Dante, who directed bothGremlinsmovies and served as a consultant on the animated series, touched on Mandel’s absence inGremlins: Secrets of the Mogwai. While speaking about the situation withComicBook.com, Dante suggested that Mandel likely didn’t want to return as Gizmo as he’s moved on from that character. While Mandel still does voiceover work on occasion, which includes a recent role in the animated seriesHarley Quinn, perhaps theBullsh*t The Game Showjudge wanted to keep his focus primarily on reality television.
“I don’t think Howie wanted to do it. I think it was, been there, done that. I think for him… Howie, you so[n] of a…” Dante said, laughing. “No, I’m just playing. I do love me some Howie Mandel though. Uh, big fan ofLittle Monstersback in the day too.”
Related:Gremlins: Secrets of the Mogwai: Plot, Cast, and Everything Else We Know
Gremlins: Secrets of the Mogwai Continues the Gremlins Franchise, But Will Gremlins 3 Ever Happen?
Gremlins: Secrets of the Mogwaiwas developed for HBO Max by Tze Chun. Even without Mandel as Gizmo, the series features a stellar voice cast including Izaac Wang, Ming-Na Wen, B. D. Wong, James Hong, Matthew Rhys, Gabrielle Nevaeh Green, Sandra Oh, Randall Park, Bowen Yang, and George Takei. Zach Galligan, who played the lead role of Billy in theGremlinsmovies, also does voiceover work for the show.
There have been a lot of rumors for years about a thirdGremlinsmovie happening, but the project never seemed to make enough traction to get off the ground. Perhaps the potential success of the animated series could finally give a third movie the momentum it needs to enter development. Otherwise, the closest we may ever get to that happening was the Mountain Dew commercial in 2021 that reunited Galligan with Gizmo. It’s worth noting that the commercial featured the return of Mandel as Gizmo, so maybe he’s more open to voicing the live-action Gizmo than the animated incarnation. It’s fun to see Billy and Gizmo together again, and you may watch that ad below.
Gremlins: Secrets of the Mogwaiis set to premiere on HBO Max, which will soon be rebranded as Max, on May 26. TheGremlinsmovies featuring Howie Mandel as the voice of Gizmo are also available on the streaming platform. you may get another look at the new show by watching an official trailer below.
