It was revealed that Donald Glover will be leaving Adventure Time: Fionna and Cake after its successful first season. This has left fans of the show and his character wondering why the comedian is not reprising his role in the upcoming season.

Here are the details on Donald Glover’s exit from the show.

Why did Donald Glover leave Fionna and Cake ahead of Season 2?

Created by Adam Muto and Pendleton Ward, Adventure Time: Fionna and Cake is an animated comedy series streaming on HBO Max. It is a spin-off of the original Cartoon Network series Adventure Time.

The series follows gender-swapped versions of the main characters Finn and Jake—Fionna and Cake—in an alternate universe. Fionna struggles with ordinary life until she is pulled into the Land of Ooo, where she discovers her true identity.

In the show’s first season, Donald Glover voiced Marshall Lee, a gender-swapped version of Marceline from the original series. He is a vampire with similar supernatural abilities to Marceline, including flying and shape-shifting into a bat.

For Season 2, Glover, who’s popularly known by his stage name Childish Gambino, will not be reprising his role. The actor has not provided any official statement, but many speculate that his health issues may be the reason. In September 2024, the Community actor notably canceled his world tour to focus on his “physical health for a few weeks.” (via Los Angeles Times)

Since the production for Season 2 coincided with this announcement, it is possible that the actor was unable to return to work. The details on his health condition are still under wraps.

On the other hand, voice actor Kris Kollins has announced that he’ll be taking over the role in the latest seasons. He took to his Instagram account to break the news.