This article was originally published on Kueez
The Simpsons has been making us laugh for more than 30 years. But lately, it's been spooking the heck out of us, too. People all over the world have figured out that the show seems to be right more often than not about its future forecasts. The comedy bits that pepper each episode have literally become a crystal ball to predict the future with. Don't believe us? Check out some of these wild predictions that ended up coming true. How on earth did they know?
Radioactive Fish With Three Eyes — Season 2, Episode 4
Hands down, Blinky is our favorite three-eyed cartoon fish. As you may remember, he was a victim of the Springfield nuclear plant. Radiation is serious stuff, and the lake creatures paid the heaviest price on the show. We hope to never encounter polluted water like that in real life. But sadly, it exists in some parts of the world. In Argentina, Blinky came to life when a person caught a three-eyed fish near a power plant. Here he is, in all his glory.
In this case, the river was flowing with water from the reactor! The Simpsons envisioned mutant fish way back in 1990. Just ten years later, the prediction came true. How could they have guessed?
Faulty Digital Voting Machines — Season 20, Episode 4
In 2008, The Simpsons featured a faulty voting machine during an election episode. When Homer tried to choose Obama on the screen, the results showed he selected Mitt Romney. Perhaps it was a joke reflecting real-life fears at the time. Was digital voting smarter than using traditional paper ballots? Frankly, the debate still continues on that one. But in real life, there was at least one proven screw-up that actually occurred.
In 2008, faulty voting machines were discovered in Pennsylvania. The touchscreen glitch was identical! Four years after the episode aired, the world was forced to admit, yet again: The Simpsons predicted that.
Big Horse Meat Bust — Season 5, Episode 19
Not all of us have an adventurous palette. We tend to eat beef, chicken, pork, or fish. On The Simpsons, one episode featured a lunch lady serving horsemeat to the students. It was funny, but we never thought this would happen in real-life. It actually did, though, in Ireland. When a regulatory agency decided to test local meat, they found a repulsive surprise: Horse DNA was in more than 1/3 of the batches!
And that's not all. Pork was mixed into a majority of samples, which can really offend people of certain religions. The Simpsons knew that stallion stew was brewing, and we are amazed. And, of course, we are disgusted.
Michelangelo's Art Is Censored — Season 2, Episode 9
Michelangelo’s David is one of the most iconic sculptures around. But does everyone actually like it? Some cultures have been offended by the nude man, in recent years. In Russia, a 2016 campaign demanded that all Resannisance statues be covered with clothing. Why is all their junk just out there, dangling in front of children? But a more interesting piece of this story is the fact that The Simpsons predicted this outrage in season 2.
One episode showed Springfielders protesting the statue’s exposed nether regions. We saw David wearing jeans, which was a silly sight. In real life, that hasn't happened just yet. He's still standing tall and proud, for all to oggle.
White Tiger Mauls Roy on Stage — Season 5, Episode 10
Siegfried and Roy wowed the world as a staple on the Las Vegas scene, for decades. What a duo! Audiences thought they had their safety protocols down cold. But when a white tiger mauled Roy live on stage, it became obvious that Tigers can't be predicted. What was predicted was the event itself, by The Simpsons. 20 years after the episode depicting the attack, Roy was mauled by his tiger, Mantecore!
Freaky stuff. But Roy wasn't mad when the inevitable happened. On the way to the hospital, he insisted: “Mantecore is a great cat. Make sure no harm comes to Mantecore."
Golfer Arnold Palmer Dies — Season 28, Episode 1
Pro-golfer Arnold Palmer once explained: "I began my day as I always do, by exercising and then downing a quart of water as my grandmother used to do in order to get the plumbing properly functioning." Was that his secret? The man lived well into his 80's — 87, to be exact. Eventually, his old ticker gave out. But our main question about the matter is, how did The Simpsons know the day he would die?
The first episode from season 28 made this prediction just hours before Arnold passed away. We think plenty of the show's predictions are impressive. But this one? Absolutely mind-boggling stuff.
Inauguration Outfit and Backstory — Season 11, Episode 17
The Simpsons has covered all kinds of fake political events over the years. Occasionally, they end up happening in real life. For Inauguration Day in 2021, it was hard to miss that the show got the VP's outfit right. Going back to an episode in the year 2000, Lisa wore something quite similar as the first female president. Although Kamala is second in line, the comparison was eerily similar.
It's all there: The smart blue blazer, the necklace, the earrings. And that's not the oddest thing, either. In the episode, Lisa makes reference to the previous president, which was President Trump. How could they know that, back in 2000?
Obscure Plot Twist In Game of Thrones — Season 29, Episode 1
Game of Thrones was a worldwide phenomenon, to say the least. Maybe it wasn't as long-running as The Simpsons. But the fascination with this fantasy sci-fi was even more intense, while it was on. People were obsessed with predicting the twists and turns, but it was always hard to guess. Only Homer knew, apparently. A spoof in the cartoon seems to show how King’s Landing would be destroyed before it even premiered. What are the odds that would all line up?
Just like Daenerys Targaryen obliterated thousands, Homer revived a fiery reptile that went on to do the same. Maybe we feel bad for the innocents behind the wall. But the accuracy here is delightful!
Donald Trump Actually Becomes President — Season 11, Episode 17
Perhaps one of the freakiest predictions in the show's history was the depiction of Donald Trump running for president. He was just a businessman at the time, although he had floated the notion a few times in interviews. He never made his move. Until he did! It was 2016, and Donald announced his official intentions to become president with a flashy escalator ride. It was stunning enough that The Simpsons writers had shown the future. But they even did it on an escalator!
It's incredible to look at the side by side. It's all right here, from season 11 back in 1999. Homer was replaced by Melania on the real ride, but we're still spooked.
Ferrets Sold As Poodles Scam — Season 13, Episode 22
Fat Tony was always scheming up a scam. It’s not surprising, since he is the head of the Springfield mafia. But one time, his tricks went too far. The day he decided to sell ferrets as poodles, he was busted. We thought that was silly. But we never thought anyone would try that nonsense in real life, with real ferrets. Lo and behold, someone did. It made the evening news!
Criminals in Argentina repackaged giant ferrets as poodles. These days, it seems like there's nothing people won't do for a quick buck. But don't say The Simpsons didn't warn us!
The Discovery of the Higgs Boson Equation — Season 8, Episode 1
Homer might have a dumb reputation, but that all changed in season 8. In between donuts, he became a respected mathematician. Viewers saw him chalking out some complicated math and probably thought nothing would come of it. But in real life, his equation was actually a well-known formula that scientists had been trying to solve since the1960's. How did the show's writers know the mass of the Higgs boson particle was about to be proven?
In 2013, it was confirmed as fact. Many fans of the show may not know that many of the writers are academics. Maybe one of them had an inside tip-off!
The FIFA Corruption Scandal — Season 25, Episode 16
Back in 2014, a fictional international organization consulted Homer on their image. They kept trying to bribe him to be a referee on their side, and give up his integrity, but Homer refused. Soccer seems like such a clean sport, so we laughed. But fans were stunned to see a similar scandal unfold a year later within FIFA. Fourteen officials were arrested for corruption after a combo IRS and FBI investigation.
Who could have predicted this? The Simpsons, that's who. And by now, we're really not surprised. We trust their forecasts. But we’ll leave it to you if you will trust FIFA ever again.
Homer's Whacking Day Comes True in Florida — Season 4, Episode 14
During season 4, Homer engaged in a silly sport on a holiday called Whacking Day. This was a very special occasion to kill snakes and whack away he did. But we had no idea that Floridians would be doing pretty much the same thing in the future. Their game was called The Python Challenge. But the idea was more or less the same. How did the writers predict this event?
Maybe we shouldn't be surprised. The Everglades are full of Burmese pythons, and some Florida natives think they've got to go. Who do they think they are, just slithering around?
The Shard Near Big Ben — Season 6, Episode 19
In season 6, the London skyline made an appearance on The Simpsons. It's famous scenery, but fans noticed there was a discrepancy between cartoon and reality. On the left, you may notice the peak of a building that did not exist in 1995. Why did the show's animators put it there? Speculation exists now that they predicted the construction of a famous skyscraper that sits there today. It's called The Shard!
In 2012, the building was really built. Here it is, to the left of Big Ben. Did the architects get inspired when they watched the show or is the Fox room run by psychics? Verdict: We just don't know.
Lady Gaga's Outfit At The Super Bowl — Season 23, Episode 22
Way back in 2012, Lady Gaga was an animated Simpsons character. Fans were delighted to see her all yellow at her Superbowl halftime show in Springfield. Little did they know that she would be the invited performer for the real-life football championship just five years later. Just like the show, she would be dangling from the air in her grand entrance. Side by side, we have to wonder: Does life imitate art, or is it the other way around?
We have no idea if the show's writers are psychics or if Lady Gaga herself is a big Homer fan. For now, all involved are keeping their poker face. Yes, we went there!
The Invention of The Tomacco Plant — Season 11, Episode 5
Agriculture might seem predictable. But everyone once in a while, there's a wild card. Homer's imagination and a little nuclear energy produced a new, yucky crop called tomacco. In 1999, the nation imagined its flavor and was relieved to know it was all just a cartoon. Until it wasn't, that is! A real-life fan tried to create the hybrid in 2003. He grafted a tomato stem and a tobacco root together to produce the plant. How did that experiment end?
Apparently, the writers on the show were impressed. The farmer came to the office to show off his stinky, new veg. But beyond the novelty factor, The Simpsons accurately predicted that it wouldn't catch on. Who would willingly buy this produce?
USA Triumphs Over Sweden in Olympic Curling — Season 21, Episode 12
Curling is not a well-understood sport in the United States. The day that America beat Sweden in the obscure Olympic competition was a surprise. Who even knew that this was a thing, and how did they do it? One of the Swedish team members explained: “In the eighth end we don’t exactly get the rocks where we wanted them and they put a lot of rocks in the house and we were forced to go all in." We don't get it. But it is interesting that The Simpsons predicted this outcome, long ago.
The show once depicted a fictional final between the two nations. It was a laugh until it really happened. What does Matt Groening know that the Olympic curling committee doesn't?
Bengt Holmström Nobel Prize Win — Season 22, Episode 1
Not everyone follows the yearly awards in econ circles. We don't, and you don't. But the Nobel prize is a fancy one, and that is an honor that sometimes makes the news. In 2016, MIT Professor Bengt Holmström won. But does he know that his big moment was predicted by The Simpsons? Six years before the decision, Lisa argued with her classmates about Nobel picks, and their betting card featured Bengt's name.
At least one staff writer has a math degree on the show. Is anyone surprised that personal interests make it into episodes? We know it happens, and we look forward to more academic gossip. Sort of.
Virtual Reality Goggle Games — Season 9, Episode 12
Virtual Reality was always a fantasy, and now it is a reality at a store near you. Geeks and gamers recently got their wish when VR goggles went mainstream. Now, you can pretend you are just about anywhere, and games are being designed to enjoy that new 3D experience. But would you believe that The Simpsons predicted how the Oculus gear would look, back in season 9? Here, we see characters playing "Yard Work Simulator".
Admittedly, yard work is not the adventure we would choose. We prefer surfing, hunting, or anything else, actually. But we can't be too hard on the prototype. How did they get the design so exact?
The Wrecking Ball Aesthetic - The Simpsons Movie
Homer always seems to be involved in a mess. In The Simpsons Movie, he tried to stop a 5,000-pound wrecking ball by cushioning the impact with his beer belly. How did that turn out? We're not going to spoil that scene for you. But what we are going to do is draw a visual comparison between Homer and Miley Cyrus. Sure, it seems like they have little to nothing in common. But you forgot one thing!
The singer expertly swung on a similar wrecking ball during her music video for a song of the same name. We don't know if the show predicted it, or if Miley stole Homer's thunder here.
Super Bowl XXVI Winner — Season 3, Episode 1
Sports betting is a tricky game, and few are willing to put their money where their mouth is. The Simpsons occasionally animate their predictions for big games. Take Super Bowl XXVI, for instance. Just a few days before the event, Lisa predicted that the Washington Redskins team would win. That's exactly what happened. And it wasn't a fluke! The Dallas Cowboys and the San Francisco 49ers were also predicted by the show.
We can't say that the show's writers know all the future winners. But for a betting man, tuning in to this cartoon might be worthwhile. Their current record is impressive!
Disney Buys 20th Century Fox — Season 10, Episode 5
Before the public knew anything, The Simpsons gave a us sneak preview of an upcoming merger. Did the writers have inside information, or was it just an educated guess? We don't know for sure. But when Disney acquired 20th Century Fox, fans of the show were not terribly surprised. The Simpsons did it first twenty years before when the 20th Century Fox headquarters were labeled “a division of Walt Disney Co.”
In 2017, the Mickey Mouse folks paid $52.4 billion to seriously expand their empire. They're probably not done yet. Perhaps the writers will have more business premonitions. Investors, tune in!
Fans Get Leftover Beatles Letters — Season 2, Episode 18
In 1991, The Simpsons featured a plotline where Ringo answered lost fan mail. Decades after the band broke up, he had bags and bags to answer, and answer he did. It was cute. But sometimes, the truth is stranger than fiction. In 2013, a few grown-up Beatles teens actually received a belated response from Paul McCartney. A lost video question was discovered at a resale event, and the rocker heard about it.
50 years later, Paul responded to their greeting: "Hi Linda and Barbara, thanks very much for your lovely tape. It finally got through, better late than never...Great to hear that you found each other after all these years...Keep enjoying the music, love Paul."
Future Autocorrect Technology — Season 6, Episode 8
The bullies of Springfield Elementary School never tire for long. They've been teasing for more than 30 seasons, and they're still going strong. But occasionally, they are thwarted from their plans. Remember the time when they tried to scheme on low-tech tablets? The show's writers built in a new feature that seems a lot like our current autocorrect. Lucky for Martin, every time they wrote "beat up Martin", it became "eat up Martha".
The Simpsons is always ahead of its time. Whether you love or hate it, autocorrect is a big part of our lives now. Sometimes it helps, and sometimes it hurts. Fun fact: Apple actually claims this episode helped improve its keyboard features!
The Big Greek Debt Crisis — Season 23, Episode 10
Few of us are really in the know about international finance. But on a 2012 episode, The Simpsons had news to share. As a guest on cable news, Homer communicated nonsense we don't even remember. What we did find notable was the ticker below his image. The feed reads: “Europe puts Greece on eBay.” That turned out to be more significant than anyone could have guessed. Merely a year later, the Mediterranean was thrown into chaos.
Deeply in debt, Greece defaulted in the IMF. It was shocking for a Euro nation to make this mistake, and it dominated the news cycle for a while. How did The Simpsons get this so right?
The Grease for Cash Scheme — Season 10, Episode 1
Admit it, you love a good get-rich-quick scheme as much as anyone else. The only person who might love it more is Homer Simpson. We know that because of his ludicrous grease business, where he used a long tube to sneak restaurant grease into his truck for resale. It was a great profit model until he got caught. We can't imagine anyone else would try this. But in real life, someone actually did, and it all went down in NYC.
Unscrupulous scammers around the city did start selling restaurant grease as a side business. Was this because they saw The Simpsons? We have no idea, but it sure looks like the show predicted it.
The Invention of the Smartwatch — Season 6, Episode 19
Yet again, ahead of the curve. The Simpsons often feature pretend technology. It's easy to animate any idea, compared to actually making it work in the real world. But a lot of whimsical concepts do happen, as time goes on. Like this smartwatch, in a flashback to 1995. Lise and her love interest used them in season six, but they were only a fantasy back then. We loved it, but we couldn't buy them anywhere.
Nowadays, we can. We have the Apple Watch, and competitors are popping up. You really could sneak around Springfield and talk to your lover on a tiny wrist computer. The designs have gotten pretty sleek since then, too.
Average Joe Astronaut — Season 5, Episode 15
The Simpsons has gone to space a few times. On one occasion, average man Homer was chosen for a NASA mission. We're not sure he would have been our first choice, or even our last. But we did enjoy seeing him blast off and chase donuts in zero gravity. In real life, something quite similar occurred in the UK when a contest was held to send an everyday citizen into orbit.
After a lengthy process, 25-year-old Oliver Knight was chosen for the once-in-a-lifetime trip. He joined 22 other contest winners from around the world. And the rest, as they say, is space history.
NSA Spying Scandal — The Simpsons Movie
Way back in 2007, The Simpsons Movie had a critical national security forecast. Always the good citizen, Marge revealed a plan to expose shady government activity. But she wasn't able to do so privately. Why? Well, when the cartoon camera panned out, you saw a huge room of agents listening in on her conversation. Fans today say this was a prediction about the spying capabilities of the NSA — the National Security Agency.
In real life, Americans actually do deal with this invasion of privacy. Edward Snowden revealed their operations in In 2013. It's been a real controversy ever since, to say the least.
Ebola Arrives In America — Season 9, Episode 3
Some people claim that The Simpsons predicted Ebola's arrival in the United States. As a refresher, that's the virus in the movie Outbreak. Way back in season 9, Marge read a bizarre bedtime book called "Curious George and the Ebola Outbreak". We were glad it was fiction. At the time, it was farfetched to think it could ever come to us. After all, this was a tropical disease. Springfield was safe, surely!
17 years later, a small outbreak did hit America. The nightmarish pandemic was contained, quickly. But we have to give credit where credit is due. The Simpsons predicted it first!
Baby Translator Tech — Season 3, Episode 24
We all wonder what our baby is trying to tell us with its gurgles and cries. At best, we can guess. But wouldn’t it be great if we could check it out with a translator? On The Simpsons, there was a machine claiming to do that in season three. The idea seemed useful, but it didn't exist in real life. You may be encouraged to know that there is now an app for that.
Technology sure has come far. In the early '90s, Homer’s half-brother Herb brought us the prediction. Now, there's the “Cry Translator” app. It's not mind reading, but we're getting closer!
Guy Sues an All-You-Can-Eat Restaurant — Season 4, Episode 8
We all love a good all-you-can-eat buffet. The mere promise is enough to get our mouths watering and our bellies bulging. Homer is just like us, in that respect. But we have to say, he took things a bit too far on the show in season 4. When a restaurant informs him he’s had enough, he doesn't get mad. He gets even, and sues them for false advertising. We were shocked by his greed!
In real life, this has happened a few times. Similar cases were publicized in 2012 and 2017. All-you-can-eat disputes get pretty silly at times, but we knew it was coming. The Simpsons predicted it.
Skype, Zoom, Facetime Technologies — Season 6, Episode 19
In season 6, Lisa makes a totally futuristic call. She uses a video chat service to talk to Marge. At the time, it was easy to animate the technology. But it didn't exist as a real tool for everyday folks to communicate. Now, 15 years later, it's something we use constantly. First, there was Skype. But now, there are plenty of options in the biz. Whether it's Facetime for fun or Zoom for work, video is no big deal.
We love that The Simpsons are so ahead of their era. Perhaps it's worth checking out just to get a tech preview, from time to time. they seem to have pretty good instincts!
Rolling Stones Elderly Tours — Season 6. Episode 19
The Rolling Stones were some of the biggest rockstars of their time. But they couldn't get no satisfaction retiring at the top of their career. The band continues touring for decades after their prime. The Simpsons predicted that they would keep touring forever in 1995, with a poster on the wall. In fact, Mick Jagger and the grand kept jamming on stage when they qualified as senior citizens. Mick is well aware he has aged, along the way. And he wants you to stop reminding him!
According to the frontman: "People have this obsession. They want you to be like you were in 1969. They want you to, because otherwise their youth goes with you. It's very selfish, but it's understandable."
A Preview of the 9/11 Terror Attacks — Season 9, Episode 1
Sometimes, The Simpsons seems like downright deja vu. Conspiracy theorists have an observation about the first episode of Season 9 — or truthseekers, depending on your perspective. When Lisa holds up a news magazine, the cover has a picture of the twin towers next to a nine-dollar price. The effect is that the image looks like the date 9/11. And as we all know, something major happened on that date. The worst terror attack in American history!
We have no idea why the animators decided to use the World Trade Center next to the number nine. But now, the image is chilling. Was this another Simpsons prediction, or just a coincidence?