This season and the next season were ordered in November 2016. Seven episodes were holdovers from the previous season. Executive producer
Al Jean continued his role as primary showrunner, a role he had since the
thirteenth season. Executive producer
Matt Selman was also the showrunner for several episodes, a role he performed since the
twenty-third season. With the 636th episode airing this season, the series surpassed
Gunsmoke as the
longest-running scripted American primetime television series by number of episodes. Commenting on the record, Jean thought the longevity of the series was due to the constancy of the Simpson characters, who have not changed since their inception. At the same time, creator
Matt Groening stated that the producers keep the show relevant by trying to surprise the audience such as having guest animators for the couch gags. This season featured the first episode co-written by Miranda Thompson, the wife of writer
Tim Long. It also featured the first episode written by Daniel Furlong and Zach Posner. Furthermore, it featured the final episode written by
Kevin Curran prior to his death. In addition,
Bill Plympton animated a sixth couch gag in "
3 Scenes Plus a Tag from a Marriage", having previously done so in
season 23's "
Beware My Cheating Bart",
season 24's "
Black Eyed, Please",
season 25's "
Married to the Blob",
season 27's "
Lisa the Veterinarian", and
season 28's "
22 for 30". The premiere episode of the season "
The Serfsons" was the final time that
Apu Nahasapeemapetilon is voiced by series cast member
Hank Azaria before he stated in 2020 that he would no longer voice the character. The producers attempted to address the controversy of a white man voicing an Indian character this season in the episode "
No Good Read Goes Unpunished", with the characters saying that the act was not offensive when the series started and would be addressed later. However, the acknowledgement caused more controversy.
Music On August 30, 2017, it was announced that longtime
Simpsons score composer
Alf Clausen was let go from the series. Clausen was given a composer emeritus credit for several seasons starting with this season's premiere. The series switched from a live orchestrated score to a produced score by
Bleeding Fingers Music, a composing collective founded by
Hans Zimmer, who composed the score for the 2007 film
The Simpsons Movie. Zimmer and Russell Emanuel served as score producers with Andrew Christie being the lead composer.
Animated shorts of Donald Trump In December 2017, Fox released an animated short from series producers depicting
Donald Trump attempting to bribe
Robert Mueller with money and
Carmen Yulín Cruz collecting it, a reference to the
Mueller special counsel investigation and Trump's response to damage caused by
Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico. In March 2018, another short was released showing Trump confessing his reported misdeeds before he wakes up from his nightmare. ==Reception==