‘The Simpsons Movie’ Sequel Not A Priority, Says Matt Groening

Matt Groening is putting the kibosh on a sequel to The Simpsons Movie, at least for the time being.

The Simpsons Movie hit the big screen in 2007 and grossed $500 million at the box office. But Groening, who originally created the Simpsons in 1987 as a short for The Tracey Ullman Show, has said that a follow-up to the film would likely not happen because of how time-consuming it was to make the first one.

Groening said, “It took us four years (to make) and it killed us. (The movie) stole animators from the show and drained resources.”

However, The Simpsons director and producer David Silverman said that a sequel is possible in the distant future.

“Maybe in another 10, 15 years,” Silverman said.

In the meantime, fans of the longest-running American sitcom can tune in for the series’ 24th season, which started airing on September 30, 2012. To date, 532 episodes of The Simpsons have aired since the show’s debut on December 17, 1989. Groening did address the show’s origin and how it has lasted nearly a quarter of a century on air.

“We were in the right place at the right time,” Groening said during a Q&A at UCLA Law School. After three seasons on The Tracey Ullman Show, The Simpsons was brought to a fledgling Fox, which was willing to take a chance on an animated series that was unlike anything else on television at the time. Groening chalked the show’s long life up to the vast Simpsons universe.

“We’ve got 400 or 500 characters, and about 50 per episode,” Groening said. Those characters and the universe created for the show carry over to other licensed products which, Groening said, are “an extension of the show.”

In 2011, the series was renewed for a 24th and 25th season after the cast agreed to take a pay cut.

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