Latino comedian Anthony ‘Citric’ Campos will be part of ‘King of the Hill’

After a 15-year hiatus, the animated sitcom “King of the Hill” returns with a new season featuring new characters like Emilio, voiced by Latino actor, comedian and musician Anthony “Citric” Campos. 

Campos, best known for playing the role of Manolo in the TV series “Lopez” and for “Idiocracy” (2006), joins the show as Bobby Hill's sous chef in his new restaurant in Dallas.

In the new season, viewers will see Campos' character Emilio be more than a work colleague to Bobby, who has grown up to be a young adult. As Campos told CALÓ News, viewers will also see Emilio become a mentor, friend and the voice of guidance for Bobby. 

“I'm the voice of reason for Bobby,” Campos said when talking about Emilio. “I help him out in certain situations and give him the best advice I can. I try to help him navigate through everyday life and life at work.” 

The character he voices, Emilio, resembles him not only in appearance—both are bald Latino men with large mustaches—but also in personality, according to Campos. 

Campos said he got inspiration for his characters in the relationships he has in real life with his family and friends. “There are a lot of similarities between me and the character Emilio. I’m the same way in real life. I always try to push everybody in the right direction,” he said.

Campos, who was born in Los Angeles, joins the Emmy Award-winning show a decade and a half after the show had been off the air. 

The new season takes viewers back to the fictional town of Arlen, Texas and to the lives of the beloved characters Hank, Peggy and Bobby Hill, along with their friends Dale, Bill, and Boomhauer, among others. Fans will see Bobby, now 21, pursuing his dream as a chef while Hank and Peggy return home from Saudi Arabia to reconnect with their immediate community.

Campos also touched on the importance of Latino representation in front of and behind the cameras. 

A 2023 study by the Annenberg Inclusion Initiative at USC found that only 6% of speaking characters in top films were Latino,  signaling a very small change from 2007. 

In a time when the underrepresentation of Latinos in Hollywood persists despite the notable increase in the number of Latinos in the United States, Campos said it was an honor to work on a show that creates room for Latino talent and characters. 

“It's an honor,” he said when talking about being one of the only Latinos in the show. “There's not a lot of Latinos in Hollywood.” 

“He knows that Latinos are a big part of this country,” Campos said when referring to King of the Hill’s creator, Mike Judge. “He's always pushing for Latinos and for me to be a part of this legendary show; it's pretty surreal.”

The show, created by Judge and Greg Daniels, centers on the Hills, a middle-class family and their interactions with their neighbors and community, as well as their own personal growth. 

“King of the Hill’s” new season will make its debut on Hulu, after it streamed on Fox for 13 seasons beginning in 1997. The new season has a total of 10 episodes, with many of the original cast returning but with different storylines of older, more mature characters. 

Campos credits the sitcom's humor and real-life anecdotes for the show's enduring popularity and fan anticipation. “The storylines on the show are relevant to everybody. It's a good family show. Judge touches on everything that's going on in the real world and that's a big part of what makes it relevant,” he said.

When asked if he had any advice for young Latino artists and creatives, he said the key was to listen to one’s interests, without fear. “Everybody has different talents. I would recommend you try different things. You might just be in there and be like, ‘yeah, this is for me,’ and then you might be there like, ‘no, this is not for me,’ but it doesn't hurt to try,” he said. “Consistency is key. If you get into something and you really like it, just stick with it and keep going and keep going, because you never know how close you are to breaking through.”

Season 14 of King of the Hill is available today on Disney+ and Hulu.  

To watch the official trailer, click here.