Could Simpsons and Family Guy Be Entering Their Final Seasons on Fox? And What Would It Mean for the Future of ‘Animation Domination’?

Ryan Schwartz
·4-min read
Could Simpsons and Family Guy Be Entering Their Final Seasons on Fox? And What Would It Mean for the Future of ‘Animation Domination’?
Could Simpsons and Family Guy Be Entering Their Final Seasons on Fox? And What Would It Mean for the Future of ‘Animation Domination’?

Is Fox’s “Animation Domination” slate poised to lose its two most iconic series?

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Disney-owned The Simpsons, Family Guy and Bob’s Burgers were all renewed for two seasons back in January 2023, which guarantees their continued presence on Fox through the upcoming 2024-25 TV season. But all three 20th Television-produced shows come with hefty license fees attached, and the two oldest shows — The Simpsons and Family Guy, which are entering Seasons 36 and 23, respectively — appear to be anticipating a post-Fox future.

Over the weekend, at Disney’s annual D23 event, it was announced that four new episodes of The Simpsons — including a two-part Christmas episode — will be exclusive to Disney+. This followed previous news that Family Guy — which, for the first time ever, is being held by Fox for midseason — will produce two holiday specials for Hulu.

Might these exclusives beget a streaming-only future for Homer Simpson and Peter Griffin? And what would Fox’s schedule look like without them?

Universal Basic Guys
Universal Basic Guys premieres Sunday, Sept. 8 Image courtesy of Fox

The broadcaster has been ramping up its animation efforts in recent years, producing more originals in-house. That includes the ill-fated Housebroken (cancelled after Season 2), returning series Grimsburg (renewed for Season 2) and Krapopolis (renewed for Seasons 2, 3 and 4), and incoming freshman Universal Basic Guys (already renewed for Season 2). The growing slate already forced Family Guy’s relocation last spring, from Sunday to Wednesday nights.

Here’s the thing, though: None of Fox’s homegrown ‘toons fare as well as The Simpsons, Family Guy or Bob’s (as seen via the ratings breakdowns below). Fox may have enough cartoons in its arsenal to keep the Sunday-night animation block alive without them… but will anyone be watching if those anchors are no longer part of the line-up? (TVLine reached out to Fox, which had no comment regarding the fates of The Simpsons and Family Guy.)

Scroll down to see how each of the six animated series Fox aired last season fared in the ratings, then hit the comments and tell us if you’d follow The Simpsons or Family Guy to a streaming service if they eventually leave Fox altogether.

The Simpsons

The Simpsons
The Simpsons

Season 35 averaged barely 2 million total viewers and a 0.6 demo rating (including Live+7 playback) — easily leading all of Fox’s animated series in both measures, though down a tick in audience from Season 34.

Season 36 premiere date: Sunday, Sept. 29 at 8/7c

Family Guy

Family Guy
Family Guy

Season 22 averaged 1.44 million total viewers and a 0.45 demo rating (with Live+7 playback), ranking second amongst all Fox ‘toons, yet down 15% and 25% from Season 21. Of note: the midseason switch from Sunday to Wednesday nights did not exacerbate the fall-versus-spring decline (-28%) that Family Guy usually sees outside of the NFL season.

Season 23 premiere date: Midseason

Bob’s Burgers

Bob’s Burgers
Bob’s Burgers

Season 14 averaged 1.35 million total viewers and a 0.45 demo rating (with Live+7 playback), down just a tick from its Season 13 numbers.

Season 15 premiere date: Sunday, Sept. 29 at 9 pm

Krapopolis

Krapopolis
Krapopolis

Season 1 averaged 1.24 million total viewers and a 0.34 demo rating (with Live+7 playback) — though those decent numbers are a bit inflated by the first handful of episodes that led out of Sunday NFL coverage (and averaged 3.5 mil and a 1.0).

Season 2 premiere date: Sunday, Sept. 29 at 9:30 pm

Grimsburg

Grimsburg
Grimsburg

Season 1 averaged 672,000 total viewers and a 0.17 demo rating (with Live+7 playback), outdrawing only The Great North in viewers and tying for the lowest demo number.

Season 2 premiere date: Midseason

The Great North

The Great North
The Great North

Season 4 averaged just 576,000 total viewers and a 0.17 demo rating (with Live+7 playback), down a full 50% from its Season 3 numbers. It stands as the least-watched Fox ‘toon, and ties Grimsburg for lowest-rated.

Season 5 premiere date: Midseason — With reporting by Matt Webb Mitovich

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