The Simpsons bid farewell to Duffman after thirty years of service

After a parody of Severance, the cult series has just let go a new character.

Oh yeah… it’s over.

It’s a small page in the history of The Simpsons that has just been turned. In the episode broadcast on January 4, 2026 in the United States, the animated series officially retired one of its most emblematic secondary characters: Duffman, bodybuilder mascot of Duff beer and grotesque incarnation of old-fashioned marketing.

The announcement comes in the episode “Seperance” (season 37, episode 13), an assumed parody of Severance. During an unexpected visit to the Simpsons, Barry Duffman, his real name, drops the bomb: “The Duff Corporation has, uh, retired this character forever. All old forms of advertising are now outdated.” Corporate spokesperson, TV ads and chanted slogans? Nerdy. Even more audible for the current generation.

The episode follows Duffman after his ouster, now employed by a start-up called EOD (Enthusiasm On Demand), where he recruits Homer, who agrees to undergo a “seperance” procedure, which dissociates his professional personality from his private life. An experience that quickly turns into existential unease. Barry, who also went through this, confesses: “Being a downie destroyed my life. I no longer had energy for my family… or for my secret second family.” Convinced that an implant had been placed in him, he even pierced his skull, before discovering that the transformation was based on simple cosmetic tricks.

Above all, Duffman never puts his costume back on. The message is clear: in the universe of the series, the character is definitively put in the closet.

Introduced in 1997 in the episode The City of New York vs. Homer Simpson, Duffman quickly established himself as a recurring figure, a jubilant caricature of advertising machismo and uninhibited capitalism, punctuating his appearances with his legendary “Oh yeah!”. His disappearance marks a change of times, as much for Springfield as for the series itself.

After almost thirty years of raising his elbow for Duff, Duffman is bowing out. He succeeds the church organist, killed a few weeks ago in the series. Watch out Springfield, The Simpsons are cleaning up!