Fact Check: Did 'The Simpsons' really predict Pope Francis' death?

WASHINGTON, DC: A claim has been making the rounds that 'The Simpsons' predicted the death of Pope Francis, down to the "exact date."

It all started when a clip from the show went viral across social media, racking up nearly 260,000 views on X (formerly Twitter) alone.

"The Simpsons predicted Pope Francis's death and the exact date 2025," the post boldly declared.

The video was narrated in a robotic tone, claiming that a "little-known" 'The Simpsons' episode showed a misplaced coffin inside St Peter’s Basilica, silent cardinals surrounding it, a Vatican flag flying at half-mast, and a giant screen flashing “11:11.”

Meanwhile, the news anchor character Kent Brockman supposedly reported "on the passing of the supreme pontiff, stating that the official cause of death is severe bronchitis. People can't believe it. Crowds gather in St Peter's Square, some holding candles, others praying in absolute silence."

The narrator teased, "A new era is about to begin. Now, in real life, concerns about Pope Francis' health are growing. At 87 years old, he has faced multiple hospitalizations, and experts warn that his condition is fragile. Could 'The Simpsons' have predicted another shocking event?"

The clip concluded: "Comment 'Pope' if you wish him strength and protection, and follow me for more eerie predictions that will leave you speechless."

Soon, the video flooded platforms like Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, Threads, and TikTok, with slightly tweaked versions popping up everywhere.

Fact Check: False

It's worth noting that the rumor is 100% false, fact-checking outlet Snopes confirmed.

Despite the flood of eerie videos, no real episode of 'The Simpsons' predicted Pope Francis’ death. It was all the work of artificial intelligence (AI), and there were plenty of clues left behind.

For starters, the video had all the hallmarks of an AI creation. Some characters had missing pupils, there was garbled text, and the narrator's voice sounded very robotic.

The TikTok clip that blew up was originally posted on February 15, just one day after Pope Francis was hospitalized for bronchitis and more than two months before his death on April 21.

Its ominous caption read: "Pope Francis' death in 2025? A disturbing prediction from The Simpsons."

But even inside the clip itself, things didn’t add up. It only mentioned the year “2025” — no specific date. And that spooky “11:11” time didn’t match reality either. The Vatican officially announced that Pope Francis died at 7.35 am local time on Easter Monday.

Meanwhile, the account that originally shared the video was packed with other obviously AI-generated clips pretending to be 'The Simpsons' predictions of random world events. 

'The Simpsons' episode that mentioned a pope's death

'The Simpsons' did once sort of mention a pope dying, but it was rather vague and definitely not about Pope Francis.

According to the fan-run Wikisimpsons site, the reference appeared in Season 31 Episode 1, 'The Winter of Our Monetized Content', which aired in September 2019. In the episode, Kent Brockman reads the news at his desk and casually says, "In other news, the pope has died."

A chyron reading "POPE DEAD" pops up, along with a cartoonish crime scene outline of a pope figure surrounded by "CRIME SCENE" tape, beer cans, and bottles.

But that’s it. There was no date, no St Peter’s Square, and no eerie predictions.

Furthermore, a quick Google search for "Simpsons," "pope," and "death" turns up nothing credible either.

Other fact-checking outlets also wasted no time putting this rumor to bed.

Organizations like Observador, Facta, and PolitiFact all independently debunked the viral claims, confirming that no real 'The Simpsons' episode predicted Pope Francis’ death.