Premieres: September 25
Airs: Sundays, 8pm
Network: FOX
Who Is In It? Dan Castellaneta, Nancy Cartwright, Yeardley Smith, Harry Shearer, Hank Azaria, Julie Kavner, Marcia Wallace
Guest stars in Season 23 include Anthony Bourdain and celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay in “The Food Wife.” Kiefer Sutherland plays a former CIA agent in the season premiere episode. Lisa (Yeardley Smith) falls in love with Michael Cera on Valentine’s Day; Aron Ralston casts a “127 Hour” spell on Springfield in the 22nd annual “Treehouse of Horror XXII” Halloween episode; actor Jeremy Irons plays bartender Moe’s (Hank Azaria) only friend, a bar rag; and actor Armie Hammer lends his voice to “The D’Ohcial Network.” Additional guest stars include Joan Rivers, Jane Lynch, Andy Garcia, and contemporary artist and graphic designer Shepard Fairey.
Where We Left Off: Nearby Ogdenville’s economy tanked and workers flocked to Springfield, which wasn’t too neighborly. Homer organized a border patrol group.
What to Expect: A global celebration cheering the 20th anniversary of the longest-running comedy in TV history. The antics continue this year with Homer cast as the lead in a comic-book feature film and Bart discovering a better prankster in school. In the annual spook-fest, “Treehouse of Horror,” Lisa winds up in a murder scheme, Homer’s blood becomes the secret ingredient in Moe’s beer, and the family fights zombies.
What to Expect: The longest-running comedy in television history keeps on going as it enters Season 22.
In “Elementary School Musical,” the season premiere episode, Marge sends Lisa to a performing arts camp where artsy counselors (guest voices Jemaine Clement and Bret McKenzie of “Flight of the Conchords”) and fellow musically inclined campers (guest voices Lea Michele, Cory Monteith and Amber Riley of Glee) inspire her to embrace her creative side. After she returns to Springfield, Lisa becomes restless with her ho-hum suburban lifestyle and catches the first bus to Sprooklyn in hopes of reconnecting with her inner hipster.
Later this fall, British imports Hugh Laurie (House) and Daniel Radcliffe (Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince) provide guest voices in the 21st annual “Treehouse of Horror” Halloween episode. Later in the season, actor Jon Hamm (Mad Men) voices an FBI supervisor in “Donnie Fatso”; and Facebook creator Mark Zuckerberg, baseball legend Mike Scioscia and sports writer Bill James all lend their voice talents to “MoneyBart.” Lifestyle guru Martha Stewart spreads holiday cheer as herself in “The Fight Before Christmas,” an episode that also features live-action puppets.
Additional guest stars stopping by Springfield this upcoming season include actors Kristen Wiig (Saturday Night Live), Paul Rudd (Dinner For Schmucks), Rachel Weisz (The Lovely Bones) and Alyson Hannigan (How I Met Your Mother); NASCAR driver Danica Patrick; comic duo Cheech & Chong; and NBA Hall of Famer Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Additionally, Joe Mantegna (Criminal Minds) returns as Fat Tony.
