Is Homer's Bart-strangling gag coming to an end? The Simpsons creator says no

Last week, it was fair to assume that The Simpsons were ready to put an age-old tradition to bed. It is hardly ever expected from long-running shows like The Simpsons to bid farewell to a popular gag such as Homer Simpson's strangling gag, which has appeared in many episodes over the show's 35-year run. But the show's October 22, 2023, episode seemed to hint that it was ready to match the strides of the generation and get rid of the popular action.

But creator and producer James L. Brooks had other ideas. In a recent interview with PEOPLE, Brooks confirmed that nothing was changing about the aggressive patriarch and his behavior towards his son in the coming days, indicating that they plan to keep the gag on despite the earlier episode depicting Homer saying he would not choke his son anymore.

When PEOPLE asked Brooks about the same, the producer replied:

"Don’t think for a second we’re changing anything....Nothing's getting tamed. Nothing, nothing, nothing...He'll continue to be strangled—[if] you want to use that awful term for it. He'll continue to be loved by his father in a specific way."

Brooks also showed an illustration of Homer strangling Bart, who was holding a smartphone with a headline that read, "Simpsons: No more strangling," depicting yet another instance of the show using real-life events in plotlines.

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What is the strangling gag in The Simpsons?

The strangling gag in The Simpsons goes back to its very start 35 years ago. In essence, it is simply Homer Simpson getting aggressive on his son, Bart, and physically assaulting the kid by strangling him. This has been a source of laughter for Fox’s long-running animated series for years now.

However, as times changed, this gag did not remain as frequent, making way for new things. Despite this, it continued to exist in the show's later episodes.

Moreover, after the recent episode's reassurance that Homer would not do that, Brooks emphasized that the strangling was not going to go anywhere. This comes from the creator despite the fact that the show has not actually depicted Homer strangling Bart in a long time. The last time this happened was during the show's 31st season, which aired over three years ago.

Brooks' declaration could mean that the show will bring back this gag again in some time. Unless it faces similar levels of backlash as some of The Simpsons's more problematic issues, which have been addressed before, this gag may continue to persist for the future seasons of the show, even if not in the same capacity as before.

Some time back, The Simpsons faced a similar backlash for the portrayal of the Indian-American character Apu Nahasapeemapetilon (voiced by Azaria), which drew a lot of controversy for the portrayal of negative stereotypes. Azaria ended up stepping down from the role in 2020.

As the show has aired since 1989, many of the things considered 'normal' back then had to be revised over the years.

Still, The Simpsons continues to be one of the most beloved shows on television. The Simpsons airs on Sundays at 8.00 PM EST on Fox.