Showrunner Matt Selman had some choice words for outlets who treated Marge’s death in The Simpsons season 36 finale as canon, despite the show’s ever-changing continuity. After over 790 episodes to its name and a theatrical movie spinoff, The Simpsons is now the longest-running scripted primetime American TV show in history.
As such, it is hardly shocking that the series has pulled off some wild storylines from time to time. As far back as 2002, South Park season 6, episode 7, “Simpsons Already Did It,” saw the show’s mince characters complain the long-running show had already staged every conceivable storyline. That was 23 years and hundreds of episodes ago.
As The Simpsons season 37 nears, it is tough to imagine how the show could still shock longtime viewers. However, in The Simpsons showrunner Matt Selman’s interview with Screenrant‘s Brandon Zachary, he noted that the delayed “Backlash” to Marge’s season 36 finale death was telling:
“I guess it speaks to the fact that Simpsons headlines drive traffic, and it means that the show does still have strong interest, fan interest and pop cultural power. If the internet can whip up a fake – well, it’s not fake. I mean, it did happen in the episode. Marge did die in the episode, but, you know, a deliberately misleading kind of headline controversy. If they can do that, then you know, it’s, I guess we should be happy that, that we should ultimately be happy that the world is so dumb… We shouldn’t be happy about that, but we are the beneficiaries the show one is, as always, is the beneficiary of the fact that the world is so dumb. We can be on CNN, or whatever entertainment page in the New York Post – let’s just say it’s the distressed condition of journalism… It is shocking to me that anything.. like a newspaper, is powerful. A brand like the New York Post can use as sources for a headline, one anonymous internet fan. I believe there was once a time where to put a fact in a newspaper, you would have three on-the-record sources confirming it. Now, in order for a full headline, of Simpsons fans enraged that Marge is killed. The one source was like, ‘You know, gamer z-z-z said they killed Marge.’ That’s the source. Oh, well.”
The Backlash To Marge’s “Death” In The Simpsons Happened Over A Month After The Season 36 Finale Aired
Marge’s Finale Death Didn’t Hit the Mainstream Until Long After Season 36’s Finale
As Selman notes, it is pretty telling that it took so long for the media to pick up Marge’s ostensible death. Season 36’s finale “Estranger Things” aired in mid-May, but Marge’s death didn’t inspire scores of viral articles until late June.
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The furor appeared to begin with a ScreenRant article about Marge’s death, which made sure to note that Marge’s death was obviously temporary and part of a future that would soon be retconned. The resulting outrage appeared to come primarily from outlets less familiar with the show.
As recently as season 35, episode 7, “It’s a Blunderful Life,” The Simpsons released an episode set in the future where Homer was dead and Bart died during the story.
The media coverage driving the manufactured outrage over Marge’s death could not have come from dedicated viewers, since fans of the show know The Simpsons has killed off characters in future-set episodes before. As recently as season 35, episode 7, “It’s a Blunderful Life,” The Simpsons released an episode set in the future where Homer was dead and Bart died during the story.
The Simpsons Fans Knew Marge’s Death Was Almost Certainly Not Permanent
The Show Has Retconned Many Entire Futures For Its Main Characters Before
The Simpsons is known for its retcons, dropped storylines, alternate timelines, and complete lack of canon. As such, the idea that Marge’s death would last was absurd on the face of it for anyone familiar with the series, although it may have fooled casual fans.
The Simpsons is available to stream on Hulu.
Although Marge’s season 36 death did happen, the rest of the episode was set decades into the future. Unless The Simpsons season 37 kept this time jump, thus radically altering the entire world of the series and the age of all the main characters, the twist was always going to prove as temporary as all the other wild events in many other episodes of The Simpsons.
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The Simpsons
9/10
- Release Date
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December 17, 1989
- Network
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FOX
- Showrunner
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Al Jean
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Homer Simpson / Abe Simpson / Barney Gumble / Krusty (voice)
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Marge Simpson / Patty Bouvier / Selma Bouvier (voice)
