The Simpsons‘ annual Halloween episode, “Treehouse of Horror”, is now “bloodier” than ever, but why did the writers take such a dark turn?
In an interview with Cracked, Simpsons writer Mike Price discussed the latest “Treehouse of Horror XXXVI” episode and how they came up with the idea. Price addressed the fact that a lot of main characters end up dead and stated:
“I know in the past, some of the episodes weren’t so much having to do with Halloween or horror, so I thought, ‘Let’s make this a real good, gruesome Halloween story.’ Which is why we get a chance to see Nelson explode and Sideshow Mel have his face ripped off by an insane Mr. Teeny. It’s not joyful, but it’s fun.”
The third episode of the 37th season shows Springfield overrun by a mysterious, sentient ball of fat that lives in the sewers. Krusty the Clown has a demonic guest on his live Halloween special (a parody of the horror film Late Night with the Devil), and we see The Simpsons in a thousand years, posed in a plastic, post-apocalyptic future.
Price was responsible for the “Clown Night with the Devil” segment featuring Krusty as the starring Springfield character. Price solely credited the 2024 horror film for being the main inspiration and also a “direct rip-off“. He continues and states, “Sometimes we do the classics, sometimes we do the instant classics, and I think that movie is an instant classic.”
Actors Michael Keaton and Idris Elba were guest voice actors on the Krusty the Clown segment as Krusty’s producer and the Devil. Speaking of Keaton, Price added, “He came in and recorded, and he was delightful. He talked about children’s television because he grew up in Pittsburgh, and when he was a young man in his 20s, before he came out to Hollywood, he worked as a stagehand on the Mr. Rogers show.”
The Simpsons is the longest-running American scripted primetime television series in history. In 2018, it surpassed Gunsmoke with its 636th episode. Recently, it was announced that The Simpsons Movie would be getting a sequel and is set to release on June 27, 2027. Overall, the series has a rating of 85% on Rotten Tomatoes.
The first “Treehouse of Horror” episode was released in 1990, and it showed Bart and Lisa Simpson attempting to outdo each other for the scariest story. Each Halloween special isn’t canon, but it attempts to shock the audience with violent and spooky plotlines. The original idea for a Halloween special was inspired by EC Comics’ horror tales.
- Release Date
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December 17, 1989
- Network
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FOX
- Showrunner
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Al Jean
- Directors
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Steven Dean Moore, Mark Kirkland, Rob Oliver, Michael Polcino, Mike B. Anderson, Chris Clements, Wes Archer, Timothy Bailey, Lance Kramer, Nancy Kruse, Matthew Faughnan, Chuck Sheetz, Rich Moore, Jeffrey Lynch, Pete Michels, Susie Dietter, Raymond S. Persi, Carlos Baeza, Dominic Polcino, Lauren MacMullan, Michael Marcantel, Neil Affleck, Swinton O. Scott III, Jennifer Moeller
- Writers
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J. Stewart Burns, Michael Price, Brian Kelley, Bill Odenkirk, Dan Vebber, Kevin Curran, Stephanie Gillis, Dan Castellaneta, Deb Lacusta, Billy Kimball, Jessica Conrad, Cesar Mazariegos, Daniel Chun, Jennifer Crittenden, Conan O’Brien, Valentina Garza, Elisabeth Kiernan Averick, Christine Nangle, Broti Gupta, Loni Steele Sosthand, Megan Amram, Bob Kushell, David Isaacs, David Mandel
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Homer Simpson / Abe Simpson / Barney Gumble / Krusty (voice)
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Marge Simpson / Patty Bouvier / Selma Bouvier (voice)
