Here's more reason for Christian parents to carefully watch out what their young children are viewing on the television: The makers of "The Simpsons" cartoon show have decided to directly promote homosexuality on TV as the upcoming Season 27 of the show will feature, among many other changes, the character Waylon Smithers Jr. finally coming out of the closet as a gay.
This develops as Homer and Marge Simpson continue to deal with the repercussions of their split.
Smithers' homosexuality has only been hinted at for the past several seasons of the show, but it has never been completely acknowledged. He appears to be in love with his hard-hearted boss Montgomery Burns, since he often daydreams about the two of them being together. He even has a tattoo on his chest of both his face and Burns' with the words "Boss of My Heart" printed across. In one episode, he even gave his boss a kiss on the lips.
Executive producer Al Jean said Smithers' homosexuality will finally be confronted in the new season of "The Simpsons." Apparently, only Mr. Burns will be surprised by the acknowledgement.
"In Springfield now, most people know he's gay, but obviously Burns doesn't," Jean told TVLine. "We deal with that in two episodes... We actually do a lot with Smithers this year; he gets fed up with Burns not appreciating him and considers his options."
Questions regarding his sexual orientation will further be revealed during the two-episode story arc in the 27th season.
As for Homer and Marge, the dutiful wife has had her fill of Homer's selfishness and boorish ways, and that is why she tossed him out of the house. However, instead of feeling sorry for his actions, Homer falls in love with a 20-something character named Candace, who is voiced by "Girls" creator and star Lena Dunham.
Whether or not Homer and Marge will get back together before "The Simpsons" comes to an end remains a question. Jean said in a different interview with The Hollywood Reporter that they are trying to bat for three more seasons.
"It's quite possible that we don't have to go through the whole negotiation for 30 seasons. I wouldn't be stunned if we stopped at 28, but my bet is on at least 30. But then you'd have to re-sign them again. If you made me pick one, I'd say the likeliest is ending after 30, but I've been wrong before. I thought five seasons was good when I got there," he said.
