Matthew Lillard Says He Was Disappointed He Wasn’t Asked Back For Scoob!

Scoob! is now available to rent or buy on digital, and fans and families everywhere are tucking into the animated movie, which is actually the first big-budget Scooby-Doo film in 16 years. However, it’s not something that everyone’s celebrating, as many Mystery Incorporated lovers are furious at Warner Bros. for replacing the regular voice acting cast.

Will Forte (Shaggy), Zac Efron (Fred), Amanda Seyfried (Daphne) and Gina Rodriguez (Velma) play the characters in Scoob!, with only franchise veteran Frank Welker returning as Scooby from the regular actors who portray the gang in the animated TV series and direct-to-DVD movies.

For Shaggy star Matthew Lillard, in particular, it was pretty crushing not to be asked back for this production. In a Zoom interview with Entertainment Tonight’s Ash Crossan, the actor opened up on his disappointment about being replaced, and you can see what he had to say below:

Matthew Lillard not being in Scoob is a crime pic.twitter.com/hIxjyn4XnN

— Ash Crossan (@AshCrossan) May 15, 2020

“Yeah, about SCOOB!, I’m running out of good things to say. I wish them all well,” Lillard began. “I hope the movie does really well. I mean, yeah, it’s a drag. I was surprised that it happened. You know, Hollywood is an interesting place. I’ve been around for a long time and some of them are easier to accept than others, when you don’t get a job. That one, that was a bummer. I like playing the part, I like having a legacy and a career that’s been 30 years. I’ve been doing it and I like the fact that I was that part. It was a bummer.”

Lillard is a firm fan favorite thanks to his iconic turn as Norville “Shaggy” Rogers in various media for the past 20 years. He first appeared as the character in live-action, in both 2002’s Scooby-Doo and 2004’s sequel Monsters Unleashed. Like Crossan says, he then took over as the voice of Shaggy once the late, great Casey Kasem retired in 2009. The performer and character have been entwined for a long time, then, so you can understand why he’s so cut up about it.

Regular Daphne actress Grey DeLisle-Griffin has expressed similar sentiments on Twitter. The consolation is that she and Lillard, alongside Velma voice Kate Micucci, will continue to play the Scooby gang in every other Scooby-Doo project going forward. But that’s why it’s so frustrating to fans – and the actors themselves – that they weren’t asked to be involved with Scoob!