Over the last decade or so, Disney fans have become accustomed to the company purchasing outside properties like LucasFilm or Marvel, to the point where it no longer feels strange to to think that characters like Luke Skywalker or Spider-Man are almost as Disney as Mickey Mouse.
However, there is one recent addition that to some still feels strange in Disney’s hands: The Simpsons.
The Simpsons, created by Matt Groening, first premiered as a series of shorts on the Fox Network variety series The Tracey Ullman Show in 1987. In 1989, Groening teamed with television legends James L. Brooks and Sam Simon to turn the shorts into a half-hour long animated sitcom. The Simpsons was a massive hit right out of the gate, with its irreverent humor and biting social satire leading mass popularity and a merchandising bonanza.
However, unlike many overnight successes that quickly flamed out, The Simpsons has remained a pop culture mainstay for more than 30 years. It has aired well over 600 episodes and broken records for longest-running animated series and primetime sitcom. The series was acquired by Disney as part of the overall purchase of 21st Century Fox in 2019.
There are several reasons why Disney owning The Simpsons could be construed as weird by fans of both. For starters, there’s the fact that The Simpsons’ brand of humor, while not particularly crass, doesn’t fit in with the wholesome family friendly image generally associated with the Disney brand.
Speaking of the Disney brand, The Simpsons has lampooned said brand numerous times over its run. They’ve dedicated episodes to lampooning the history of the Disney Studios (“The Day the Violence Died”) and the company’s parks (“Itchy and Scratchy Land”) as well sprinkling more references throughout the run of the series. It will be… odd, to say the least, to have all of those references available on the Disney+ streaming service later this year.
Beyond the television show itself, it may be strange to many that Disney now owns The Simpsons because the characters have a heavy presence in Universal’s theme parks. Both of Universal’s U.S. resorts not only count versions of The Simpsons Ride as anchor attractions – the story of which pokes fun at Disney parks – but they also feature fully realized lands based on the town of Springfield, including themed food and drink and costumed characters. In addition, Universal has been using Simpsons characters, mainly Homer and Bart, heavily in merchandising and advertising in recent years.
Now, it has to be noted that many of these same points could be made about Marvel’s presence in Universal’s Islands of Adventure prior to Disney’s purchase of Marvel. On top of that, by all reports, Universal’s licensing agreement with The Simpsons is nowhere near as stringent as the deal with Marvel, which means that Disney may be able to incorporate Simpsons characters into the parks at their discretion. It’s unclear if Universal would retain their Simpsons rides or keep using the characters in marketing if that were to happen.
Eventually, like all the other outside properties Disney has acquired this past decade, The Simpsons will be fully integrated into the Disney family. However at the moment, it’s totally understandable that some may find Disney owning The Simpsons weird.
How do you feel about it? Have you accepted the reality that soon The Simpsons will be as Disney as Donald Duck, or does it still weird you out? Let us know in the comments below.
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Disney also owns ABC, which produced and broadcast “Once Upon a Time” that reimagined the backstories of many fairytale characters. One of these was Peter Pan who was presented as evil.
Disney already has many darker attractions. They can just focus on the lighter side where plenty of material is there with a close family at the center. How fun would a ‘Simpsons go to WDW’ ride be? lol
Disney is long term. There’s no hurry to cash in at parks if streaming is earning. When the market works, they can roll out characters at HS and take it from there. It’d feel cohesive near Muppet 3D.
What? Simpsons simply doesnt belong with disney. The creators cant stand them. Anyone with any artistic integrity cant stand them. They are the single worst studio out there for so so many reasons. They are scummy and make the world a worse place. The simpsons is too self aware to be apart of that.
Watching the Simpson’s Movie on Disney plus and bart just pretended to be Mikey Mouse and says “I’m the mascot of an evil corp. Who am I?”
Disney also owns ABC, which produced and broadcast “Once Upon a Time” that reimagined the backstories of many fairytale characters. One of these was Peter Pan who was presented as evil.
Sorry Luke Skywalker will never be as Disney as Mickey Mouse. Stop buying other people’s ideas Iger!
Disney already has many darker attractions. They can just focus on the lighter side where plenty of material is there with a close family at the center. How fun would a ‘Simpsons go to WDW’ ride be? lol
Disney is long term. There’s no hurry to cash in at parks if streaming is earning. When the market works, they can roll out characters at HS and take it from there. It’d feel cohesive near Muppet 3D.
What? Simpsons simply doesnt belong with disney. The creators cant stand them. Anyone with any artistic integrity cant stand them. They are the single worst studio out there for so so many reasons. They are scummy and make the world a worse place. The simpsons is too self aware to be apart of that.
Disney will try to own everything. Saves them from being creative.
Here’s something even more wierd… Disney owns Family Guy!
It feels a bit weird, but don’t have a cow, man.