Although he looks like he came from a cartoon, Donald Trump won’t be part of “The Simpsons” this season, executive producer Al Jean says.
Though the ever-busy “Simpsons” studio turned out this little bit last June when Trump made his announcement after a descent on the Trump Tower escalator, Jean says they generally try to avoid specific political commentary on the show so as not to date it.
What’s funny about Trump’s campaign now might not be two terms later, when “The Simpsons” is still running, be they reruns or new seasons.
The venerable cartoon begins its record 27th season Sept. 27 on Fox, with an episode that will feature Lena Dunham and the cast of “Girls” called “every man’s Dream.”
“It’s the episode where Homer and Marge separate,” Jean says. “Notice I don’t say divorce.”
When he mentioned the episode casually earlier this year, “ it was reported and then re-reported. And then CNN had a headline: MARGE AND HOMER SPLIT UP.”
They aren’t. And even if they do, briefly, it will only in the course of an episode.
“The Simpsons” famously doesn’t do long, show-changing arcs. Part of its charm is that the family stays about the same all the time.
Other highlights for season 27?
“We have a Halloween show where Sideshow Bob gets his wish and kills Bart,” Jean says. But because it’s a “Treehouse of Horror” episode, the story is a fantasy. This year, though, the series has both a “Treehouse” and a “real” Halloween episode.
Beyond that, “We have a show where a character is played by both Kate McKinnon and Natalie Maines from the Dixie Chicks. Natalie does the singing and Kate does the voice,” he says.
Plus, he says, “We have a parody of ‘Boyhood’ — or a theft of it. We just show Bart at various ages and how we think he’s going to turn out.”
The most recent contract for “The Simpsons” guarantees 28 seasons and what would be its 625th episode. “But there’s no guarantee beyond that.”