FoxThere’s no programme out there that quite manages to keep its finger on the pulse like The Simpsons.
From Toys R Us closing down to Donald Trump becoming president, it has often been claimed the cartoon has the ability to ‘predict the future’.
And not only that, The Simpsons is always on the ball when it comes to entertainment news so, naturally, creator Matt Groening was never going to let the release of Disney+ go by without having a say on it
FoxThe Fox cartoon took the opportunity to poke fun at Disney’s long awaited new streaming service just hours before it launched over in the US.
As the opening titles swept past a billboard outside Springfield Elementary School, the advertisement, as it often does, featured a character relating to the show.
This time, the board had a picture of a sad looking Krusty the Clown and his show The Krusty The Clown Show, with the tagline: ‘The only thing NOT on Disney+’.
The episode came just hours before the monthly subscription service went live at midnight on Monday, giving audiences instant access to Marvel, Pixar, Star Wars, National Geographic and Disney’s own movies and series.
FoxOf course, this includes The Simpsons, with Disney+ being well stocked with 30 seasons of the comedy cartoon – before now, they have all previously been available on Hulu, which is also controlled by Disney.
Dan Castellaneta, who voices Homer, announced The Simpsons’ arrival on Disney+ – in character, of course – saying:
Homer Simpson here, proud addition to the Disney family and soon appearing on Disney+. I for one salute our new corporate overlords.
Unfortunately for us Brits, we’ll have to wait until March 21, 2020, for the eagerly anticipated release of the brand new streaming service.
Coming from their official account, the announcement does include one wary detail: ‘Please note: Titles may vary by territory.’
Check out the launch video for Disney+ here:
This links in to why it’s taking so long for us across the pond to get our hands on Disney+ – contracts. Because several Disney properties are still locked in with other distributors, we need to wait until they run their course.
Simon Brew, editor of Film Stories magazine, explained to Wired:
It’s a temporary problem, and not unique to the UK… 20th Century Fox has pre-existing deals with broadcasters and streamers, signed before Disney took it over.
And Disney itself had long and rich contracts with the likes of Sky. Ideally, Disney would have liked to have bought Sky too, but it was effectively gazumped by Comcast.
With Disney+ set to offer every film the company has ever made, at least we know it’ll be worth the wait.
If you have a story you want to tell send it to UNILAD via [email protected]
Emma Rosemurgey is an NCTJ trained Journalist who started her career by producing The Royal Rosemurgey newspaper in 2004, which kept her family up to date with the goings on of her sleepy north east village. She graduated from the University of Central Lancashire in Preston and started her career in regional newspapers before joining Tyla (formerly Pretty 52) in 2017, and progressing onto UNILAD in 2019.