 The episode originally aired in the United States on Fox on February 4 , 1993 and was written by Jon Vitti and directed by Jeffrey Lynch . The producers tried to cast Tom Cruise for the role of Tom , but Cruise refused , and they used Phil Hartman instead . " Brother from the Same Planet " received favorable reception in books and in the media , and was highlighted among the five best episodes of the series by the writers of the Fox program King of the Hill . 
