Is Marge Simpson really gone? Fans were left shocked after a dramatic season finale, but here’s the truth straight from the show’s top producer.
After The Simpsons Season 36 finale stirred up social media with what appeared to be the heartbreaking death of Marge Simpson, executive producer Matt Selman is clearing the air… and shutting down the rumors.
In the time-jumping episode, set 35 years in the future, a tearful Homer is shown at Marge’s grave. The headstone reads, “Beloved wife, mother, pork-chop seasoner,” while Sarah McLachlan’s haunting vocals play in the background. Fans flooded platforms like X, Instagram, and Reddit, fearing the worst: was this truly the end for Marge?
Not even close, says Selman. “There’s no official canon in The Simpsons universe,” Selman told Variety. “These future episodes are like playful ‘what if’ scenarios. Each one imagines a different future, and none are set in stone.”
Selman, who’s been a key writer for the show since 1997, emphasized that Marge’s “death” is nothing more than a single speculative storyline… not a permanent fate. “Marge isn’t dead. She’s alive and well in Springfield… just like she always has been,” he clarified. “The only place Marge has ever died is in one episode set in an imagined future that aired six weeks ago.”
The confusion, he suggested, was amplified by clickbait journalism. “Let’s be real… sites want traffic, and headlines drive clicks,” Selman said. “Every outlet that ran ‘Marge is dead’ headlines knew she wasn’t actually gone. But they ran with it anyway to hook readers.”
