With the hit FXX Simpsons marathon and live Hollywood Bowl event now complete, the next source of Simpsons anticipation will be which character is killed off during the season 26 premiere as well as how long we can expect the show to keep churning out new episodes on Fox. In a recent interview with Deadline, executive producer Al Jean gave a few teases for the new season as well as his thoughts on the future of the show: As for which character will be killed off during the season premiere “Clown in the Dumps,†Jean commented on some fans’ prediction that Krusty will be getting the axe: “We gave it that title for a reason; some have guessed (the character’s death) correctly, and some are really off.†Unlike the death and resurrection of Brian on Family Guy, however, Jean insisted that it’s the real thing: “When we kill ‘em, they stay dead.â€
Jean also described next season’s Halloween episode as broken down into three segments: “‘School in Hell,’ inspired by the work of Neil Gaiman; then there’s a Stanley Kubrick-inspired Clockwork Orange segment; and then there’s a sequence where the Simpsons meet their Tracey Ullman selves.†When asked about how much longer The Simpsons plans to run on Fox, Jean said: “We could last two more years, maybe four, maybe more. No one has talked to us about wrapping the show.â€