'It still has a sizable audience': Creator Seth MacFarlane opens up on 'Family Guy's 25th anniversary

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Creator and star Seth MacFarlane opened up about 'Family Guy's legacy and its future in honor of the 25th anniversary of the show's debut episode on Wednesday, January 31, and fans can be assured that there is still a lot of devilment left in the beloved and controversial animated Fox series.

"It's still surviving and thriving," MacFarlane, 50, told TheWrap. "It still has a sizable audience and is a perfect example of there being an appetite for something. So we continue to feed the beast," he added.

When asked on what the creator has in store for the long-running show, MacFarlane said, "There's no indication that the show is going to end any time soon."

When did 'Family Guy' air its first episode?

'Family Guy' aired its premiere episode 'Death Has a Shadow' on January 31, 1999, after Super Bowl XXXIII. Although it was initially canceled after its third season in 2002, impressive DVD sales and syndication ratings led Fox to revive the series.

The show, which follows the daily ongoings of the dysfunctional Griffin family, is currently airing episodes from its 22nd season. It was renewed for season 23 in January 2023.

Seth McFarlane voices four different characters in the show

MacFarlane, who voices Peter Griffin, Brian Griffin, Stewie Griffin and Glenn Quagmire, stars alongside Alex Borstein (Lois Griffin), Seth Green (Chris Griffin), Mila Kunis (Meg Griffin), Patrick Warburton (Joe Swanson) and Arif Zahir (Cleveland Brown). (In the earlier seasons, Lacey Chabert previously voiced Meg while Mike Henry largely voiced Cleveland.)

Seth McFarlane feels 'strange' to celebrate the show's 25th anniversary

Looking back on the Emmy-nominated show's longtime presence on air, MacFarlane also told TheWrap that it feels "strange" to be celebrating the premiere episode's 25th anniversary. However, he said the show's staying power could be attributed to the ability to maintain the laughter.

"I would never ever compare these two shows ... but I always loved the answer that Jackie Gleason gave when he was asked about how [The Honeymooners] endured with only 39 episodes. And he just said, ‘Because they were funny,'" explained MacFarlane, adding "I don’t know that our answer would be any different."

He continued, "I think the goal of the show is just to make people laugh. ... It delves into social allegory and politics now and then without question, as a good primetime animated show should, but that’s always secondary. It's a room full of comedy writers who just want to f*****g laugh. ... That’s the mission statement of the show and it doesn't ever really try to position itself with any pomposity as anything more than that, which I think in this instance is probably a good thing."

'Family Guy' returns for its spring premiere on March 6 at 9.30 pm ET on Fox.