“The Simpsons” has an eerie knack for predicting the future, from Donald Trump’s presidency to the coronavirus to a Tom Hanks ad praising the accomplishments of the government during tough times. Here are 18 times the long-running comedy series got it right
Lady Gaga Takes Flight
In the episode “Lisa Goes Gaga,” Mother Monster is shown suspended by cables flying over the audience at a concert. Well, surprise, surprise because, during the Super Bowl LI’s halftime show, Gaga descended from the stadium’s roof with suspension cables wearing pretty close to the same outfit as seen on “The Simpsons” episode.
2016 Nobel Prize Winner
In a 2010 episode, Milhouse predicted that Bengt R. Holmstrom would win the Nobel Prize in Economics and sure enough, in 2016 Holmstrom and Oliver Hart were announced as joint winners of the prize.
Donald Trump Becomes President
In a 2000 episode titled “Bart to the Future,” Lisa becomes president after her predecessor, Donald Trump, apparently ruined the economy
RIP Arnold Palmer
“The Simpsons” mentioned legendary golfer Arnold Palmer four times in its 28th season premiere – which aired just hours after Palmer died. Homer Simpson tells his wife Marge that he filled up his Super Soaker water gun with lemonade and his pal was filling up his with iced tea and says, “we’re going to Arnold Palmer Lenny.” He was, of course, referring to the lemonade and iced tea drink mixture, which was named after the golfer.
Siegfried and Roy Tiger Attack
In 1993, an episode titled “$pringfield (Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Legalized Gambling),” the show imitated a Siegfried and Roy act, where the magicians got attacked by their trustworthy tiger. Unfortunately, in 2003 Roy Horn was attacked by one of their white tigers during a live performance. He sustained injuries but lived.
Faulty Voting Machine
During the 2012 elections, a voting machine proved faulty when votes cast for Barack Obama went to Mitt Romney instead. In a 2008 episode, Homer Simpson went to the voting booths to cast a vote for Obama, but… his vote went to McCain.
Higgs Boson
In a 1998 episode, “The Wizard of Evergreen Terrace,” Homer Simpson writes out an equation on a chalkboard which, if solved, “you get the mass of a Higgs boson that’s only a bit larger than the nano-mass of a Higgs boson actually is,” science author Simon Singh said, speaking of the Higgs boson particle, also known as the “God Particle.”
Horse Meat Scandal
In the 1994 episode titled “Sweet Seymour Skinner’s Baadasssss Song,” the lunch lady was seen reaching into a barrel labeled “assorted horse parts” and putting the meat into the school’s lunch pot. In 2013, it was reported that traces of horse DNA was found in beef products across the UK.
Guitar Hero
The now basically extinct but once popular video game Guitar Hero was first released in 2005. But in a 2002 “The Simpsons” episode, Mick Jagger and Keith Richards give Homer a jacket that has “guitar hero” printed on the back of it.
Farmville
The virtual reality game Farmville was all the craze in 2009 with people rushing home from work or school to tend to their farm. In a 1998 episode, “The Simpsons” shows a scene where kids are excited to play in a yard work simulator.
Old Beatles Letters
In Season 2’s Episode 18, “Brush With Greatness,” Ringo Starr from the Beatles is shown responding to fan letters while saying, “They took the time to write me, and I don’t care if it takes me another 20 years, I’m going to answer every one of them.” In real life, two women in England received a reply to their fan mail from Sir Paul McCartney 50 years after they had written him.
Smartwatches
Sorry Apple, but “The Simpsons” beat you in the smartwatch race. In a 1995 episode set in the future, Lisa’s husband is shown speaking to a phone on his wrist. The first smartwatch wasn’t created until 2013.
Disney Owns Fox
Back in 1998, a quick scene in “The Simpsons” showed 20th Century Fox as “a Division of Walt Disney Co.” And in March 2019, Disney completed its $71.3 billion acquisition of 21st Century Fox’s film and TV assets.
U.S. Wins an Olympic Gold Medal in Curling
In 2010, Homer and Marge beat Sweden and took home Olympic gold for Team U.S.A. in Mixed Match Curling. As the animated sportscaster said, “Open your history books, tear out the pages and put this indelible Olympic moment in.” Eight years later, the U.S. Men’s Curling Team beat Sweden 10-7 in the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics to take home the gold.
Murder Hornets and Coronavirus
In a 1993 episode, a Japanese factory worker accidentally spreads the contagious “Osaka Flu” to Springfield, and in the townsfolk’s rush to find a cure, they accidentally knock over a van with killer bees inside. The spread of “murder hornets” in America has coincided with the coronavirus in 2020.
Ted Cruz’s Cancun Trip
In the 1993 episode “Marge in Chains,” Springfield Mayor Joe Quimby gives a press conference announcing there’s a pandemic happening — and letting residents know he didn’t escape to the Bahamas during the disaster. It’s later revealed that Quimby is just wearing a suit from the waist up and is actually broadcasting from a beach in swim shorts. “The Simpsons” fans were quick to point out it was an almost identical situation to Texas Sen. Ted Cruz’s escape attempt to Cancun during the state’s deep freeze.
Richard Branson’s Space Voyage
In the episode “The War of Art,” a quick cutaway shot showed Richard Branson floating in a spaceship, where he admired the art of forger Klaus Ziegler (voiced by Max von Sydow). Years later, Branson voyaged into space on one of Virgin Galactic’s first crewed flights in 2021.
Tom Hanks Lends the Government Some Cred
In 2022, national treasure and award-winning actor Tom Hanks voiced an ad for the Biden administration. But of course, “The Simpsons” beat him to it. In the 2007 “The Simpsons Movie”, a cartoon version of the beloved actor says, “Hello, I’m Tom Hanks. The US government has lost its credibility so it’s borrowing some of mine.”
