Summary
- Matt Groening achieved a surprising record in 2023 when all three of his TV shows - The Simpsons, Futurama, and Disenchantment - were still running simultaneously.
- The brief period of all three shows airing at the same time was an impressive accomplishment, particularly since Disenchantment struggled with critical acclaim.
- Disenchantment's ending means that Groening is now back to only having two shows on the air, but there is potential for Disenchantment characters to appear in The Simpsons or Futurama, given their shared universe and similar elements.
The return of Futurama means that Matt Groening managed to pull off a wild achievement that seemed like it would never happen only half a decade ago. Groening is best known as one of the co-creators of The Simpsons. Although producers Sam Simon and James L. Brooks were also pivotal to the show’s development, Groening designed the characters and pitched the series. However, this iconic animated family sitcom isn’t Groening’s only show. The cartoonist also co-created Futurama back in 1999 and Netflix’s fantasy parody Disenchantment in 2018, with both shows keeping his distinctive character designs. This led to Groening briefly achieving a surprising record in 2023.
While Futurama’s season 11 revival wasn’t the first time the series returned to screens, it was the first time that the sci-fi comedy came back while Groening had two other shows ongoing. The Simpsons has been running since 1989 and was recently renewed for its 35th and 36th seasons. However, Futurama has endured a much more complicated production history. Futurama began life in 1999 and its original run lasted four seasons, ending in 2003. Then, Futurama produced four direct-to-DVD movies between 2007 and 2009, leading to the show’s revival in 2010. This revival was canceled after two seasons before Futurama was un-canceled again.
Futurama's Revival Allowed All 3 Matt Groening-Created Shows To Run Simultaneously
Hulu revived Futurama once again in 2023, thus providing Matt Groening with an impressive career first. For a brief moment, all three of his TV shows – The Simpsons, Futurama, and Disenchantment – were still running in 2023 thanks to the revival. As Disenchantment season 5 ended the show’s run for good, this achievement only lasted for a brief period. However, it was still a commendable career first for the show’s co-creator. Since Futurama had previously been canceled before Disenchantment's premiere in 2018, it didn't seem like Futurama, The Simpsons, and Disenchantment all airing simultaneously would ever become a reality. However, fortuitous timing meant this happened, for a short while.
During August 2023, Groening had a Netflix fantasy series, a Hulu sci-fi show, and a famous Fox family sitcom all on the air at the same time. While The Simpsons season 34 ended before Disenchantment season 5 and Futurama’s season 11 revival began, the achievement was still impressive. Since The Simpsons never gained a spinoff in its 34 years on the air, Futurama remains Groening’s second-most famous project. Disenchantment, meanwhile, struggled to gain the critical acclaim that both earlier shows enjoyed. While the critical consensus on The Simpsons soured after its 10th season, Disenchantment never enjoyed such impressively stellar reviews during its five-year run.
Disenchantment's Ending Means Matt Groening Is Back To Only 2 Shows On The Air
The time that all three of Groening’s shows were still running at the same time was very brief. Since Disenchantment ended on September 1, 2023, it is now again just Futurama and The Simpsons that are on the air simultaneously. However, Disenchantment’s serialized story played a major part in its fate. The show didn’t last as long as Futurama or The Simpsons partially because it followed a single storyline that was always inherently limited. While Groening’s earlier shows were sitcoms with little fidelity to their canon, Disenchantment was a heavily serialized fantasy comedy with a pre-ordained ending.
Matt Groening's Shared Universe Means Disenchantment Characters Can Still Return
One of the more surprising revelations from the Futurama revival was the confirmation that Disenchantment takes place in the same universe as the sci-fi series. Since Disenchantment and Futurama’s connections to The Simpsons have already been established, Matt Groening’s shortest-lived show could now survive via his earlier hits. Disenchantment may be over, but the characters could still appear somehow in The Simpsons or Futurama. Since all three shows feature magic, time travel, and other far-fetched story elements, setting up this crossover shouldn’t prove too tricky. However, whether the two Disney shows can use Netflix characters could prove thorny.
It would take another major plot twist for The Simpsons to cross over with Disenchantment, but the show has gotten so surreal in recent seasons that this does feel achievable. The Simpsons season 29, episode 1, “The Serfsons,” was set entirely in a fantasy land version of Springfield populated by magical versions of the show’s characters. As a result, it wouldn't be impossible for the show to incorporate Groening’s other series into the fold. Meanwhile, Futurama has always toyed with fantasy elements, most notably in the spinoff movie Bender’s Game. If Futurama devoted an entire movie to parodying fantasy tropes, the show could revisit Groening’s most recent series.