Bart Simpson might soon have a new catchphrase in his collection: “Don’t have a Cowboy, man.”
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| ESPN's Simpsons-Themed Monday Night Football Altcast ESPN |
The Walt Disney Co., the NFL, and ESPN are joining forces to launch another animated alternative broadcast of an upcoming NFL game, but this time, they’re going big with “ESPN’s The Simpsons Funday Football.”
On December 9, Disney+ and ESPN+ will stream the Dallas Cowboys-Cincinnati Bengals matchup, set in Springfield’s Atoms Stadium, with all players replaced by animated characters inspired by those from The Simpsons series on Fox and Disney+.
This marks the second consecutive year that Disney+ will stream an animated NFL game, but this year’s broadcast is expanding in multiple ways. For one, it’s a Monday Night Football game, not a Sunday morning broadcast like last year’s Toy Story game.
Unlike last year’s game, which faced limitations due to the Hollywood strikes that prevented Disney from fully utilizing talent from those films, this year’s Simpsons broadcast will feature a complete roster of voice talent from the show, including Hank Azaria, Nancy Cartwright, Dan Castellaneta, Julie Kavner, and Yeardley Smith.
They’ll lend their voices to pre-recorded sketches and segments (written by the Simpsons production team) that will run before and during the game, with some featuring players from each team and ESPN personalities like Stephen A. Smith, Peyton Manning, and Eli Manning.
The alternate broadcast will also have its own announcer booth, with animated versions of Mina Kimes, Dan Orlovsky, and Drew Carter calling the game.
During parts of the game, Bart Simpson will appear on the field for the Bengals (or, rather, an animated version of Bart taking the place of a real Bengals player), while Homer Simpson will play for the Cowboys. Marge and Lisa will be interviewing players on the sidelines during the game, with Maggie operating the SkyCam.
The Simpsons-themed alternative broadcast means that ESPN will offer three different versions of that week’s Monday Night Football game. The traditional presentation, led by Joe Buck and Troy Aikman, will be available on ESPN, ABC, and ESPN+. The “Manningcast,” hosted by Peyton and Eli Manning, will air on ESPN2 and ESPN+, and the Simpsons version will stream on Disney+ and ESPN+.
This game will be the highest-profile live sports event to stream on Disney+.
The Simpsons—a series Disney acquired through its 2019 deal with Fox—attracts a younger male demographic that the NFL wants to reach, making it a somewhat more fitting animated choice compared to last year’s Toy Story broadcast.
While new episodes of the show continue to air on Fox (often seeing a ratings boost when there’s a Sunday NFL doubleheader), Disney+ has streamed several shorts and will also offer an exclusive holiday special in December.
