However, in order to allow Homer to go live for those three minutes, a special version of the married father of three is going to be created using motion-capture technology.
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“The Simpsons” will air its first ever live episode after 27 years on May 15.
The installment will feature Homer – voiced by Dan Castellaneta – discussing topical subjects and responding to questions from fans. It may not just be Homer either: Jean says other members of the Simpson family may appear at some point and “have stuff to do”.
According to Deadline, Homer will take time to both reflect on the events of the day, and to answer questions sent in by fans via Twitter. Early tests have shown that the motion capture can work well with the animation style of The Simpsons, and theres nearly definitely enough time between February and mid-May for any and all kinks in the process to be worked out. You get two chances to interact with him.
Executive producer Al Jean admitted Fox will find some creative ways to “prove” that Homer’s three-minute segment is live, and is confident Dan can pull it off because he is a “great improviser”.
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The rest of the broadcast, which took eight months to produce, will be a normal animated episode. All tweets should be submitted between Sunday, May 1 and Wednesday, May 4. Jean also shares that this seeming gag actually fits into the theme of the episode: improv comedy. In the past, Will & Grace, 30 Rock, ER, The Daily Show, One Life to Live and more shows have done live broadcasts as ratings stunts.
