Al Jean has officially confirmed that he’s stepping down as The Simpsons’ showrunner after 25 years, marking the end of an era for the classic animated series. Jean’s last episode as The Simpsons’ showrunner — season 37, episode 5, “Bad Boys… for Life?” — has him credited as its writer, and tells the story of when the family realized Bart was a bad boy.
In a tweet announcing his departure, Jean explained that he still enjoys working on the show, but he won’t be the showrunner for the foreseeable future. There’s a lot of pressure attached to the role of showrunner; absolutely every decision involved in making the show comes back to them. Jean will have a lot more fun stepping back into his original role as a staffed Simpsons writer.
Al Jean Has Been A Key Part Of The Simpsons Since The Beginning
Jean has been a part of The Simpsons’ writing staff since its very first season. In 1989, Jean and his writing partner Mike Reiss became the first writers to be hired to work on The Simpsons. Jean and Reiss co-showran the series in seasons 3 and 4 before leaving to create their own show, The Critic.
The Critic was canceled after two seasons, and their follow-up project, a live-action sitcom called Teen Angel, was canceled in its first season. Jean returned to The Simpsons in season 10, and resumed his position as showrunner in season 13, without Reiss at his side. Jean continued on as sole showrunner until season 33, at which point Matt Selman joined him as co-showrunner.
Jean was also one of the writers and producers who worked on The Simpsons Movie. Suffice to say, apart from the few years when he was off working on his own projects, Jean has been a major part of The Simpsons for its entire run. He’s been there since the beginning, and he has the longest tenure as showrunner by far.
What Al Jean’s Departure As Showrunner Could Mean For The Simpsons
Jean’s departure, and the development of a Simpsons Movie sequel, provide the perfect opportunity to reinvent The Simpsons. Jean has been the guiding vision behind The Simpsons for the past 25 years, and in that time, the show has settled into a stale formula, relying too much on celebrity cameos and contrived storylines. Now is the perfect time for a fresh voice to come in.
Selman will take over as sole showrunner in Jean’s absence, so the shift won’t be too radical. But as sole showrunner, Selman will have a lot more control than he had as Jean’s co-showrunner. This is the end of an era for The Simpsons, but it could be the start of an even better one.
