The Simpsons Is Sorry For Killing A Character Who Was With The Show From The Beginning

"The Simpsons," now in its 500th season (okay, it's actually in season 35, but who's counting?) recently made headlines by killing off a character who has been with the show since the beginning. It's not the first time the classic animated sitcom has bumped off a character — Maude Flanders famously died, as did Bart's teacher Mrs. Krabappel, and both instances left poor Ned Flanders a widower. Bleeding Gums Murphy's death sent Lisa Simpson into depression. Dr. Marvin Monroe was said to have died, only to then return. Then, of course, there's the unfortunate Frank Grimes, who died after grabbing some electrical wiring in one of the show's most infamous (and best) episodes. In short, death is nothing new to Springfield — especially when you consider how long "The Simpsons" has been on the air. The characters may not exactly age, but time marches on. 

However, this recent character death seems to be getting to people. The character who just met his demise is Larry, one of the barflies who was always seated at the bar at Moe's Tavern. The barflies are the various drinking buddies of Homer Simpson, and while some of them — specifically Barney, Lenny, and Carl — have had rich lives (and subplots) on the show, Larry was always a silent background player, looking a little sick as he chugged another Duff Beer. Now that he's gone, however, viewers of the show are reacting strongly. It seems Larry's death was presented in such a depressing way that one of "The Simpsons"'s producers has felt compelled to weigh in on the matter. 

Speaking with TMZ (... but why?), Tim Long, a consulting producer of "The Simpsons," says he understands that some viewers found the episode depressing ... but that was kind of the point! Per the TMZ report, the writers on the sitcom wanted Larry's death "to hit the audience hard." However, Long added that "he's sorry to those fans upset about the death, and the sad episode in general," adding that "fans seemed to take it as hard as Homer and the gang did during the episode — because it speaks to how beloved the show still is."

Meanwhile, "Simspons" writer Mike Reiss had a more humorous take on the matter on Twitter (no one calls it X, stop it, get help).

People are angry we killed off this guy on @TheSimpsons ?
I've worked there for 35 years and I didn't even know his name! pic.twitter.com/jGT5W5Mlm9

— Mike Reiss (@MikeReissWriter) April 26, 2024

In the episode, Larry dies while seated at the bar at Moe's. Homer and the gang come to learn that while they never gave Larry much attention, he considered all of them to be his friends. Yep, that sounds kind of depressing. Anyhoo, while Larry was never a major character, he's been hanging out in the background of the series since the first season all the way back in 1989, so his death is understandably unexpected and more than a little shocking. So long, Larry. We hardly knew ye. But now your legacy will live on forever, just like "The Simpsons," which seems destined to be on the air until the world ends.