Numerous shows have aired special live “stunt”; episodes, ranging from ER to 30 Rock, but now it’s The Simpsons” turn.
The special never-before-attempted experiment with live animation will air on Sunday, May 15, according to a press release from Fox, which states that Marge, Bart and Lisa will turn the show over to Homer for the final three minutes of the episode (only those three minutes will be live). As a bonus, that three-minute segment will be live twice, for both the East Coast and West Coast broadcasts.
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Beginning Sunday, May 1 until Wednesday, May 4, fans can tweet the questions they’d like Homer to answer, using the #HomerLive hashtag.
The big question, of course, is how they’ll be able to pull off live animation, considering it typically takes a team of animators months to create a single episode.
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In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, showrunner Al Jean said the show will use motion capture technology to make the animated scene, with Homer’s voice and accompanying body movement expressing things “he could only be saying live on that day.”;
“As far as I know, this is the first time that’s been done by any animated show,”; Jean said, noting the episode in question will be about the world of improv comedy. “And Dan [Castellaneta, voice of Home] is a great improviser.”;
The Simpsons airs Sundays at 10 p.m. ET/PT on Global; you can also watch full episodes online.