Why the Simpsons couch gag disappeared

Producer Matt Selman explains this decision as motivated by pure pragmatism.

If you’ve noticed that recent seasons of The Simpsons on Disney+ use their famous couch gag a lot less, you’re not alone.

This cult opening of the credits, which has become a true signature of the animated series, no longer appears systematically at the start of each episode. And there is a very simple reason for this.

In an interview with the Four Finger Discount podcast (see below), executive producer Matt Selman explained the change. According to him, the creative team had to make a choice: favor the main story rather than the introduction. With each episode lasting approximately 20 minutes and 40 seconds, it’s impossible to sacrifice narrative time for a gag, no matter how inventive:

“The episode is a thousand times more important than this fantasy at the beginning,” he sums up.

Result: the famous couch gag is no more. In any case more systematic. Since season 32, it has become rarer. It has not completely disappeared, but it has become occasional, not to say eventful. He sometimes reappears when the length of the episode allows it, or in special versions. This is particularly the case with The Simpson Horror Shows, these special episodes for Halloween. This will also be the case for the next Disney+ special episode Extreme Makeover: Homer Edition, which will even feature a “mega couch gag” designed with a team of guest artists.

Matt Selman also recognizes an evolution in usage: today, many spectators skip the credits to go directly to the episode. A phenomenon which makes these openings less central in the overall structure:

“If I had an unlimited budget, I would put a couch gag in every episode, which would only appear on streaming, and you would be surprised every time,” he confides. And to add, in reference to the “skip intro” button: “You see, we think like you!”

Season 37 of The Simpsons is currently in progress on Disney+ in France.