A sequel to The Simpsons Movie has been announced, nearly two decades after the first film based on the long-running cartoon series was released.
The sequel film was confirmed on Monday by 20th Century Studios, with a release date set for 23 July 2027.
The film poster was shared on Instagram with a picture of a doughnut being grabbed and a tagline that read: “Homer’s coming back for seconds.”
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Created by cartoonist Matt Groening and starting in 1989, the series follows the Simpson family – Homer and Marge and their three children, Bart, Lisa and Maggie – through their day-to-day lives.
The cartoon has aired for 37 seasons and has been renewed through to season 40, which is also widely expected to be the last.
The Simpsons Movie, which was released in July 2007, saw Homer accidentally pollute Springfield’s water supply, resulting in the Environmental Protection Agency encasing the town in a dome and leaving him with the task of saving the city and his family.
The film, which made more than $500m at the global box office, ended with the mostly silent baby Maggie saying “sequel?” at the end of the credits.
In 2014, Simpsons executive producer and Simpsons Movie cowriter James L Brooks revealed he had been approached by Fox to make a sequel. But in 2024, Simpsons writer and executive producer Al Jean said there had been no formal talks or script development, saying discussions for a sequel had stalled due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Jean said Disney was watching to see how Inside Out 2 performed in cinemas after several Disney animated films bombed at the box office, adding: “I want to see the animation business completely returned to what it was before the pandemic. And then, I think if that was the case, it would make sense to do The Simpsons theatrically.”
Inside Out 2 took $1.6bn at the box office and briefly became the highest-grossing animated film of all time until it was surpassed by Ne Zha 2 earlier this year.
No plot details have been announced yet.
The Simpsons is the longest-running animated and scripted prime-time US TV show of all time, with almost 800 episodes airing over 36 years. Last year, Pamela Hayden, who voiced Bart’s blue-haired best friend Milhouse, school bully Jimbo and Rod and Todd Flanders, announced her retirement from the show.
In a joking reference to the show’s longevity, the season 36 premiere was billed as The Simpsons’ finale – because eternally 10-year-old Bart finally turned 11.
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