The Simpsons is known for predicting pop culture events years before they actually come true.
Some of their predictions are so spot-on, viewers have questioned whether they’re real, or if they’re fan edits made to look like old episodes.
Still, it’s the longest-running American animated series for a reason–one of those being just how well the writers can predict the most outrageous current events, years before they actually happen.
Check out 12 of the craziest storylines from The Simpsons that actually ended up coming true
1. “Oh Brother, Where Art Thou?” – Season 2, Episode 15 (1991)
Somehow, The Simpsons predicted Elon Musk’s infamous Cybertruck.
Homer’s $82,000 car was meant to cater to every American, but his outlandish ideas end up creating a mess of a car that tried too hard to be futuristic.
While Elon Musk’s Cybertruck might not look anything like The Homer, the similarities are definitely there.
2. “The Wizard of Evergreen Terrace” – Season 10, Episode 2 (1998)
In “The Wizard of Evergreen Terrace,” Homer attempts to become an influential inventor like Thomas Edison. But, his seemingly nonsensical writing on a chalkboard actually wasn’t nonsense at all.
Renowned British science writer Simon Singh told The Independent that Homer’s final figure on the chalkboard isn’t too far from the 2012 CERN Higgs boson discovery.
“If you work it out, you get the mass of a Higgs boson that’s only a bit larger than the nano-mass of [what] a Higgs boson actually is,” Singh said. “It’s kind of amazing as Homer makes this prediction 14 years before it was discovered.”
3. “Homer’s Paternity Coot” – Season 17, Episode 10 (2006)
One of the more recent predictions from The Simpsons played out last year, when fans made the connection between the Titanic submersible disaster and the episode “Homer’s Paternity Coot.”
In the episode, Homer finds a man he thinks is his long-lost father and agrees to go into the depths of the ocean with him to find an old ship. Disaster strikes and Homer gets stuck, but wakes up in a hospital a few days later.
4. “Treehouse of Horror XIX” – Season 20, Episode 4 (2008)
“Treehouse of Horror XIX” made a scarily accurate prediction of an electoral mishap related to former President Barack Obama.
In the episode, Homer is seen voting for Obama in a booth, but his vote is soon revealed to have been tallied as one for John McCain.
5. “Deep Space Homer” – Season 5, Episode 15 (1994)
What seemed like an unrealistic idea when the episode aired in 1994– an ordinary man going to space – has since become a common concept. Commercial space flight is something people can look forward to in the not-too-distant future.
6. “Sweet Seymour Skinner’s Baadasssss Song” – Season 5, Episode 19 (1994)
One prediction a lot of fans probably aren’t happy about coming true is the Springfield Elementary lunch lady revealing she adds horse meat to the kids’ food.
A report from The Guardian details the “horse meat scandal” of 2013, which found 29% of the animal used in Tesco burgers.
7. “Lisa’s Wedding” – Season 6, Episode 19 (1995)
It seems like the technological advancements we now use every single day weren’t too hard to predict all those years ago.
“Lisa’s Wedding showed a brief moment where Hugh talks to his watch, predicting the rise of smartwatches nearly two decades before the first one would actually be introduced to the world.
8. “Brother, Can You Spare Two Dimes?” – Season 3, Episode 24 (1992)
In this episode, Herb creates a baby translator, which is able to decode what babies are trying to say when they’re babbling.
While they might not be as advanced as Herb’s, there are currently dozens of “baby translator” apps available for purchase on your smartphone.
9. “Lisa Goes Gaga” – Season 23, Episode 22 (2012)
The Simpsons knew Lady Gaga would perform at the Super Bowl years before the rest of the world.
In the 2012 episode “Lisa Goes Gaga,” Lady Gaga visits Springfield and performs her songs while flying over an audience, which also ended up happening when she actually performed at the Super Bowl in 2017.
10. “Bart to the Future” – Season 11, Episode 17 (2000)
One of the most well-known Simpsons predictions has to be Donald Trump’s presidency.
In a 2000 episode, Lisa Simpson was the leader of the country, mentioning that the United States was tasked with fixing the economy after former Donald Trump’s presidency.
As we all know, 16 years later, Donald Trump became President of the United States.
11. “Lisa’s Wedding” – Season 6, Episode 19 (1995)
Smart watches aren’t the only technological advancement The Simpsons predicted, they also showed their fans a feature similar to FaceTime decades before it came out.
While calling her mom, the phone that Lisa dialed included a screen that showed Marge’s face in real-time attached to a rotary dial. FaceTime would be introduced to Apple users 15 years later in 2010.
12. “Marge in Chains” – Season 4, Episode 21 (1993)
Unsurprisingly, The Simpsons also predicted the COVID-19 pandemic.
In a 1993 episode, the entirety of Springfield (except for Marge) caught the Osaka Flu after a shipment of products reached their town.
In the episode, Osaka Flu caused a similar pandemic to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Osaka Flu also originated from a different country before it made its way to the U.S, just like the coronavirus.