The future of long-running series The Simpsons is uncertain because of the forthcoming Fox-Disney merger, it has been reported.
When the current season comes to an end – its 30th – Matt Groening’s animated show will have clocked in a staggering 663 episodes – an impressive, if costly, feat for the Fox Broadcasting Company (FBC).
According to Variety, the series has been a loss for the network for several years now and its future has been guaranteed thanks to money earned by licensing deals and tie-in merchandise.
This makes the series’s future uncertain when considering Disney is set to take over Fox. Firstly, the licensing deals look like they’ll be arranged rather differently. Most worryingly for fans, though, is that FBC will no longer be splitting the cost of each episode with 20th Century Fox and will be paying for each episode with no guarantee of the money that’s been ensuring the series’s return for years now.
With no certainty that it will receive receipts for the licensing deals and merchandise, it’s looking likely FBC might has no choice but to call time on the series.
Despite this, reports suggest that a two-season renewal is looking likely. Even if FBC is forced to swing the axe, Variety states that Disney has “a multitude of options” when it comes to The Simpsons, namely nabbing it from the channel to put it on its upcoming streaming service, Disney+.
The Simpsons‘s current season draws to a close in May 2019.
