D23 Expo 2019: 'The Simpsons' season 31 will pay tribute to 'Stranger Things', reveals an extensive list of guest stars
America's most favorite nuclear family, 'The Simpsons', made their first-ever appearance at the D23 Expo. The panel saw Groening, executive producers Al Jean, Matt Selman, supervising director Mike B. Anderson, and stars Nancy Cartwright (Bart Simpson) and Yeardley Smith (Lisa Simpsons), take the stage.
The panel also shared a few tidbits of what to expect in the upcoming season. As reported by Indiewire, the yearly tradition of 'Treehouse of Horror' will pay tribute to one of 2019's top releases 'Stranger Things'. There will be homages to the Demogorgon, the Upside-Down, classic arcade games and, of course, the new coke.
Season 31 will also have a rich slew of guest stars — John Mulaney, John Legend, Chrissy Tiegen, Jane Goodall, Olivia Colman, and the return of Jon Lovitz as the voice of Marge’s ex-prom date, Artie Ziff.
Talking about the series, Selman said, "Everyone loves the Treehouse of Horror episodes. The real-world horror has gotten so real, it spills over into another holiday, right? This year we will have a Thanksgiving of Horror that is super scary."
'The Simpsons' kicked off as a short on 'The Tracey Ullman Show' in 1987 and ran for a good three seasons before it spun off into is own half-hour for Fox. Thirty seasons later, it’s still going strong and has found an additional home in the soon-to-launch streaming platform Disney+, not to mention, a strong fanbase.
According to Den of Geek, Fox picked up seasons 31 and 32 in February. By the end of Season 32, the series will have produced a staggering total of 713 episodes.
The show has had a tremendous cultural impact and has earned 31 Primetime Emmys, 30 Annie Awards, and a Peabody. Its catchphrases have are still part of everyday vernacular and even Homer Simpson’s “D’oh!” has been added to the OED (sans apostrophe).
'The Simpsons' will show on Sunday nights during their 2019-2020 season. They will be followed by the new series 'Bless the Harts', followed by 'Bob’s Burgers' and Seth Macfarlane's 'Family Guy'.
'The Simpsons' will bring all 30 seasons to Disney+ when it launches on November 12.
