Matt Selman, co-showrunner for The Simpsons, recently opened up about the show’s approach to covering politics and the return of Jimmy Kimmel Live! to ABC after its six-day suspension.
For an Entertainment Weekly article published on Sunday, September 28, Selman explained that covering the U.S. political landscape on The Simpsons is a bit different from late-night talk shows and even South Park.
“When you write a show that doesn’t come out until 10 months after you write it, it kind of takes the pressure off, because who knows what the f— we’re gonna be looking at in 10 months,” he pointed out. “So like, South Park, they make their show in a week, and eventheycan’t stay up to date on things. More crazy s— goes down faster than eventhey can do it.”
Selman also mentioned Jimmy Kimmel‘s show getting pulled “indefinitely” following his remarks about the death of Charlie Kirk. The conservative activist and Turning Point USA founder, 31, was fatally shot while speaking at Utah Valley University on September 10.
“Jimmy Kimmel’s great, and I’m glad he is back on TV,” Selman told EW. “Censorship sucks. What can I say? Censorship sucks.”
During Kimmel’s September 15 monologue, the late-night host said, “We had some new lows over the weekend with the MAGA gang desperately trying to characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them and with everything they can to score political points from it.” After suspending the late-night show on September 17, ABC reinstated it, and Kimmel made his record-breaking return on September 23.
Of The Simpsons‘ approach to covering politics, he explained, “It’s not our mission statement to respond to the crisis of the moment. It’s more about a town of good-natured dum-dums dealing with a changing world, yet our characters never really change. The world changes around them.”
Season 37 of The Simpsons premieres on Sunday, September 28, at 8 p.m. ET on Fox.