The Simpsons left fans baffled on Sunday night when the legendary sitcom announced that the episode kicking off the 36th season was in fact the series finale .
The episode, entitled “Bart’s Birthday,” was billed as “a special Fox presentation” to add a bit of legitimacy to the prank. It begins with former Simpsons writer Conan O’Brien presiding over a group of celebrities attending “ The Simpsons Series Finale” at the Dolby-Mucinex Theatre.
“Why end The Simpsons now?” O’Brien asks the crowd. “Now, not many people know this, but Fox has been trying to end it for years,” he claimed. “When the very first episode aired in 1989 the viewers agreed on one thing: It wasn’t as funny as it used to be, and their expressions of hatred could serve as a history of modern communication technology. Fox executives, unaccustomed to criticism of any kind, immediately caved to public pressure and decided to end ‘The Simpsons’ in 1990.”
O’Brien then runs clips from several iconic episodes, like 1990’s “Bart the Daredevil” and 2000’s “Little Big Mom,” in which Homer suffers grievous but non-fatal injuries. “Many now-classic episodes were originally conceived as series finales,” O’Brien tells the audience. But for many reasons, including Rupert Murdoch’s helium budget and the success of The Simpsons Movie X-rated parody, the show went on.
But now that Fox has rebranded itself as a dating service for cow tippers,” O'Brien says as a still from the network’s Farmer Wants a Wife flashes behind him, “the time has come to finally end The Simpsons .” The host goes on to explain that ChatGPT has been employed to write the finale to provide a conclusion that satisfies fans without tarnishing the show’s legacy.
The rest of the episode plays out with a bug, or on-screen watermark, telling viewers they’re watching the Simpsons series finale. Following O’Brien’s intro, the story plays out in an AI-simulation of a Simpsons episode in which many prototypical “series finale” events take place, such as Mr. Burns (accidentally) signing his factory over to the employees and Moe shuttering his tavern. Principal Skinner announces he’s taking a new job overseeing an obedience academy in Sacramento, setting the ground for a spin-off series.
“I’ll no doubt find a new cast of eclectic characters to interact with,” he says during his retirement speech. “Also, Groundskeeper Willy will be my roommate.”
But at the end of the episode, Bart is able to snap Springfield out of the AI-pocolypse by refusing to blow out his birthday candles. This leads Homer to strangle his young son , snapping everyone back to reality. The episode ends with O’Brien asking ChatGPT, “Do you have 800 more episodes in you?”
In short, The Simpsons is not ending. Additionally, it doesn't appear that any significant part of Sunday night's episode was completed using AI.
The exact reason for the prank is unclear, but it may have to do with The Simpsons ’ uncertain future at Fox. The network has yet to greenlight the show for a 37th season, which some industry insiders see as an ominous sign. The release of several special Simpsons episodes to Disney+ this fall likewise has some predicting the iconic series may soon move from its native network.
For now, though, nothing is changing. New episodes of The Simpsons air every Sunday night on Fox as they have for the last 36 years.
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