‘Simpsons’ Creator James L. Brooks Confirms Homer Will Continue to Strangle Bart: ‘Nothing’s Changing'

The Simpsons creator James L. Brooks confirmed to People that Homer Simpson won’t stop strangling Bart anytime soon. Since The Simpsons began airing in 1989, Homer has often vented his aggression by wrapping his hands tightly around his son’s throat and screaming, “Why you little—!!” Of course, the moments are always played for comedy.

A recent episode of the longest-running American sitcom seemed to imply that Homer had curbed his abusive instincts.

The October 22 episode, titled “McMansion and Wife,” contains a scene in which Homer introduces himself to a new neighbor, Thayer (Hank Azaria), by way of a firm handshake. “Woah, that’s quite a grip,” Thayer tells Homer.

“See, Marge, strangling the boy has paid off," Homer jokes to his wife. "Just kidding. I don't do that anymore,” he smiles. “Times have changed.”

It led many fans to believe that The Simpsons had gone soft, but Brooks pushed back against that claim in his recent interview. “Don’t think for a second we’re changing anything,” he said.

“Nothing's getting tamed. Nothing, nothing, nothing,” Brooks went on. “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.”

The outlet reported that Brooks then showed them an illustration from the show commenting on the controversy. In the storyboard, Homer is choking Bart, who’s holding a smartphone. On the tablet is a news article with the headline, “Simpsons: No more strangling.” A word bubble attributed to Homer reads: “Why you clickbaiting—!!”

Nevertheless, it’s been quite a while since Homer has strangled Bart. According to IGN, he’s been on good behavior since season 31, which ran from 2019–2020.

The show has addressed Homer’s abuse before in a winking fashion. In a season 22 episode, aired in 2011, Homer attended a “fathering enrichment class.” It climaxes with Kareem Abdul Jabbar throttling the patriarch to show him how Bart must feel. As a result, Homer can no longer strangle “the boy,” as he calls him. However, that reversal didn’t last for long.