The Simpsons kills off long-running character after 34 years: ‘Dead as a doornail’

The Simpsons has killed off a character who has been on the show for 34 years – but fans thought she was already dead.

In the latest episode of Matt Groening’s animated sitcom, Alice Glick, the organist in Springfield’s church, died during a service being led by Reverend Lovejoy.

Alice Glick was introduced in season two episode 21, “Three Men and a Comic Book”, which aired in 1991, and was voiced by Cloris Leachman. Tress MacNeille took over the role following Leachman’s death in 2021.

Executive producer Tim Long confirmed Glick’s death, telling People: “In a sense, Alice the organist will live forever, through the beautiful music she made. But in another, more important sense, yep, she's dead as a doornail.”

Many fans, however, thought Alice had already been killed off in the season 23 episode “Replaceable You” after she was attacked by a robotic seal, following which she appeared as a ghost.

But Glick also returned in human form without explanation, with a contingent of Simpsons fans theorising her original death scene had not been canonical.

Fans are now expressing confusion following this new episode.

“This is the second time she's died,” one person wrote on X/Twitter, with another adding: “Didn’t she die before in that episode where Lisa invents that robot seal toy?”

“So they’re just pretending like robotic seals never made?” one fan chimed in.

Another viewer explained: “She died back in season 23 with robotic seals, but then a few seasons ago she was alive again for a small speaking role. This time her second death seems to be the main focus of an episode, so this should be permanent.”

In 2024, The Simpsons killed off Larry the Barfly, a beloved character who had featured on the show since season 10.

In response to an outcry from viewers, Long said: “I’m sorry if some fans are upset, but we really wanted to use Larry’s death as a way to show that even the most peripheral people in our lives have dignity and worth, and that we really shouldn’t take anyone for granted.”

Other Simpsons characters to have been killed off over the years include Bart’s teacher Edna Krabappel, who was written out of the show following the death of her voice actor Marcia Wallace in 2013.