Contract Brawl With Fox May Kill Simpsons

Has Moe polished his last glass? Has Homer slammed his last Duff’s? Has Krusty made his last small child cry? It’s all possible. Fox is threatening to pull the plug on history’s longest-running sitcom after the current season—its 23rd—if its core voice actors won’t accept a whopping 45% paycut, sources tell the Daily Beast. The cast had offered to take a 30% cut in exchange for some of the show’s massive backend profits, but Fox demurred.

“The show has made billions in profits over the years and will continue to do so as far as the eye can see down the road,” one insider said. “Now Fox is basically saying, ‘If you don’t take this deal, we’ll shut down the show,’ and they’ll continue to make a ton of money." The six main voice actors currently earn about $8 million a year each, but think years of creative contributions entitle them to a slice of the show’s bigger backend pie. (More The Simpsons stories.)