If you were bingeing Big Mouth and suddenly did a double-take during season 4, you aren’t losing your mind. One minute, Missy Foreman-Greenwald sounds like the quirky, high-pitched nerd we’ve known since 2017, and the next, there’s a subtle but distinct shift in her cadence.
So, who plays Missy in Big Mouth? The answer is actually two people. For the first few years, it was Jenny Slate. Now, and for the foreseeable future, it is Ayo Edebiri.
This wasn’t just a random casting shuffle because someone got too busy. It was a massive, public decision that mirrored a huge turning point in how Hollywood handles animation. Honestly, it's one of the few times a voice change actually became a part of the character’s DNA rather than just a weird continuity error you’re supposed to ignore.
The Jenny Slate Era: Where It Started
When Big Mouth first dropped on Netflix, Jenny Slate was the perfect fit for Missy. She brought this frantic, "breathless dork" energy to the role that made Missy a fan favorite. You probably know Slate from Parks and Recreation (the iconic Mona-Lisa Saperstein) or her stand-up.
Missy is biracial—her mom is white and Jewish, and her dad is Black. Slate, who is white and Jewish, initially figured the connection was close enough. In her own words later on, she reasoned that because she shared Missy’s Jewish heritage, it was "permissible" to play her.
For three and a half seasons, it worked. Missy was the girl who loved Nathan Fillion, obsessed over her plush toys, and had a green belt in capoeira. But as the show started digging deeper into the actual experience of growing up as a person of color, things got complicated.
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Why the Change Happened (The 2020 Reckoning)
In June 2020, everything shifted. Amidst the global conversation about race and representation sparked by the Black Lives Matter movement, Jenny Slate made a public announcement: she was stepping down.
She didn't get fired. She didn't have a "creative dispute" with Nick Kroll. She simply realized her original reasoning was flawed. She posted a long message on Instagram basically saying that Black characters should be voiced by Black people, and by playing Missy, she was participating in the "erasure of Black people."
The creators—Nick Kroll, Andrew Goldberg, Mark Levin, and Jennifer Flackett—were totally on board. They actually apologized for the original casting, admitting they "made a mistake" and took their privilege for granted. It wasn't just Big Mouth, either. Around the same time, Kristen Bell stepped away from playing a biracial character in Central Park, and Mike Henry stopped voicing Cleveland on Family Guy.
Enter Ayo Edebiri: The New Voice of Missy
Finding a replacement wasn't just about finding someone who could mimic Jenny Slate. They wanted someone who actually got Missy.
They found that in Ayo Edebiri.
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At the time, Ayo was already a writer on the show for season 5. She’s a comedian, writer, and now an Emmy winner (you definitely know her as Sydney from The Bear). When she auditioned, she talked about being an "uncomfortable child" who sat in her room reading Latin translations of The Iliad. She was Missy.
The Mid-Episode Switch
Most shows would wait for a new season to swap actors. Big Mouth did something way more interesting.
The transition happens in Season 4, Episode 9, "Horrority House." Missy is literally going through a journey of self-discovery, looking into a funhouse mirror and seeing different versions of herself. At the start of the episode, Slate is still the voice. By the end, after Missy embraces her identity and "assembles" herself, Ayo Edebiri takes over.
It was brilliant. It turned a logistical necessity into a narrative beat about puberty and growth.
How Ayo Changed the Character
Ayo didn't just copy Slate's homework. While she kept the nerdy essence, her version of Missy feels a little more grounded. As the show progressed into seasons 5, 6, and 7, Missy’s storylines became much more focused on her Black identity—things like hair care, code-switching, and navigating her white mother’s "colorblind" parenting.
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Fans were split at first. Some missed the specific "manic" vibe Slate brought. Others felt Ayo made Missy feel like a more complete, three-dimensional person. By season 8, it’s hard to imagine anyone else doing the voice.
Fast Facts: The Missy Transition
If you’re looking for the quick "cheat sheet" on the casting, here’s the breakdown:
- Jenny Slate: Voiced Missy from Season 1 through Season 4, Episode 9.
- Ayo Edebiri: Took over in Season 4, Episode 9 and carries the role through the series finale (Season 8).
- The "Why": Slate stepped down to allow for authentic Black representation in the role.
- The Connection: Ayo Edebiri was actually a writer for the show before she was ever cast as the voice.
What This Means for Voice Acting
The Missy recasting wasn't just a blip. It set a precedent. It forced the industry to ask if "anyone can play anything" in animation, or if the life experience of the actor matters.
In Big Mouth, the answer was that the experience does matter. Once Missy started visiting her cousins in Atlanta (voiced by Lena Waithe and Quinta Brunson) and dealing with racial microaggressions at school, having a white actress deliver those lines started to feel "off" to the creators and the actress herself.
What to Watch Next
Now that you know who plays Missy in Big Mouth, you might notice the nuances in the performances if you go back and rewatch. The show is heading into its final season, and Missy’s arc remains one of the most complex "coming of age" stories in adult animation.
If you’re a fan of Ayo Edebiri’s work as Missy, you should check out her other projects to see her range. She’s everywhere right now, from The Bear to Inside Out 2 (where she voices Envy).
Actionable Insight: If you're a writer or creator, take a page from the Big Mouth playbook: when you realize a creative choice no longer aligns with the story's heart or the world's reality, it’s better to pivot transparently than to stay comfortable. You can actually use that change to make the art better.