Season 36 of The Simpsons premiered on September 29, 2024, with the episode "Bart's Birthday" (which was originally supposed to be the final episode of season 35) and it will conclude on May 18, 2025, with the episode "Estranger Things". Barring the premiere of a Disney+ exclusive episode on February 12, 2025, the show went on hiatus from December 2024 to March 2025, due to the holiday season, several awards shows and televised sports events, and FOX giving more airtime to their other animated sitcoms.
Because of the 2023 WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes, this season mostly consists of episodes that were produced for season 35 but never broadcast. Three complete episodes (one of them being double-length) will be released on Disney+ as streaming-exclusive specials. These episodes aired as part of season 36 but are treated as separate specials rather than be a part of the normal rotation.
This is the final broadcast season to feature vocal performances by Pamela Hayden (the voice of Milhouse van Houten, Jimbo Jones, Rod Flanders, Janey Powell, and other secondary boy and girl characters) as Hayden announced in November 2024 that she was retiring from the show and from voice acting in general. "O C'mon All Ye Faithful" was the final episode featuring voicework from Hayden. Fox is currently seeking new actors for her characters: While a new voice for Milhouse has yet to be found, former MADtv cast member Mo Collins has been cast as Jimbo Jones, while Chris Edgerly temporarily voiced Rod Flanders.[2][3]
Conan O'Brien hosts a special, A.I. generated episode of The Simpsons touted as the series finale where Bart's 11th birthday leads to major changes to the status quo.
The Information Rage: In a parody of Warner Bros.' Pacific Rim, giant red and blue monsters born from America's political division attack Springfield.
The Fall of the House of Monty:In a spoof of Winchester: The House That Ghosts Built, a Victorian-era Mr. Burns is jump-scared on Thanksgiving by the ghosts of his abused workers.
Denim: In this special stop-motion animated segment (and spoof of the Venom comic book character and Marvel movies), Homer wears a pair of pants that turn him into a half-man, half-alien virus.
A tattooed man at a mysterious night circus transports Lisa into three strange stories from the innocent 1950s, the chilling retro-present, and a brutalist future where prestige TV rules the world.
This episode includes parodies of "The Screaming Woman," "Marionettes, Inc." and "Fahrenheit 451."
Famed British mentalist, Derren Brown, comes to Springfield and uses psychological tricks and showmanship to raise the town's Christmas spirit. When Homer gets hypnotized and mistakenly believes he is Santa Claus, it sets off a cheery chain-reaction and causes everyone to question what they believe and to explore the meaning of "miracle."
Guest Stars: Derren Brown as himself, Patti LaBelle as herself, Pentatonix as World Famous Santa Claus
After Grampa and Moe recruit a Macedonian slugger to play in Springfield, it strains their friendship and the very integrity of baseball.
Guest Stars: Kevin Burkhardt as himself, Jamie Demetriou as Aeropos Walkov, Steve Gelbs as himself, Kevin Millar as himself, Chris Rock as himself, Danny Trejo as himself.
When Bart & Lisa stop watching Itchy & Scratchy together, Marge fears that they'll start to drift apart... but she has no idea how bad things are about to get!
Guest Stars: Sarah McLachlan as singer/herself, Zooey Deschanel as Quirk Girl, Max Greenfield as Schultz
Trivia
The Disney+ special episodes were originally produced as the final four episodes of Season 35.
