After more than 25 years, seemingly unstoppable juggernaut The Simpsons could finally be coming to an end very soon.
That’s according to series showrunner Al Jean, anyway, who has suggested that the beloved cartoon will likely finish after its 30th season.
The long running show is currently in the midst of its 27th season, with a 28th season run of episodes already ordered after that.
However, speaking to the Hollywood Reporter, Jean claimed that Springfield may not be on our TV screens for much longer.
The Simpsons showrunner Al Jean
He said:
It’s quite possible that we don’t have to go through the whole negotiation for 30. I wouldn’t be stunned if we stopped at 28 but my bet is on at least 30. But then you’d have to re-sign them again. If you made me pick one, I’d say the likeliest is ending after 30, but I’ve been wrong before. I thought five seasons was good when I got there!
Showrunners have teased an ending to the show a couple of times before, with both The Simpsons Movie and flash forward episode ‘Holidays of Future Past’ initially written with a series finale in mind.
But this is the clearest declaration yet that the end is nigh for Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa, Maggie and the gang.
As for how things will come to an end on the show, well, Jean has some thoughts on that too.
He added:
I had an idea, I thought it’d be cool if the last episode ended with them getting ready for the Christmas pageant that appeared in the first episode, so that the whole series was a loop that didn’t have a beginning or end. That’s my two cents – but no one has approved that or anything.
Very Futurama!
Although the show has drastically declined in quality in recent times, there’s no denying that at its best, The Simpsons is still pretty untouchable, and they can still smash out a classic episode when they really want to.
We’re expecting a pretty special ending to the show when the time does finally come.
