The Simpsons is no stranger to celebrity cameos, with many of the biggest Hollywood stars and musicians featuring a cameo on the show at some point. They became so common that when The Simpsons Movie was released in 2007, it was expected that large celebrity appearances were a given. And while the movie did feature some notable names, there were planned celebrities who didn’t make it in.
It’s no secret that The Simpsons Movie was an incredibly difficult undertaking. Show creator Matt Groening started planning for it all the way back in 2001, yet the movie didn’t hit the big screen until 2007. Apparently, the script was rewritten well over a hundred times, mostly due to the writers being undecisive on a story. It kept feeling like an extended episode rather than a feature-length film, and everyone behind the scenes was determined to get it right.
With so many versions of the script, many of them featured the expected Simpsons cameos, but unfortunately, their characters were scrapped over time. The majority of the cameos were lost because there was no place for them in the story, as the movie could’ve easily become overcrowded with forced-in celebrities rather than focusing on the plot. However, another reason for the cut cameos was due to time constraints. As the production was seemingly dragging on forever, and the show’s seasons needed to take priority, there became a need to finally have it released. And so the time it would’ve taken to get ahold of the celebs and animate their cameos wasn’t a priority and had to be scrapped.
While there are likely planned cameos that haven’t been revealed, there’s plenty that has been spoken about over the years. Actors such as Kelsey Grammer from Frasier and Minnie Driver from Good Will Hunting have said they were planned to cameo at some point. And many other famous names like Edward Norton, Isla Fisher and even environmental activist Erin Brockovich were set to appear in the movie, which would’ve perfectly fit with the film’s environmental message.
While it’s disappointing to hear which stars couldn’t make it in, The Simpsons Movie still has its fair share of cameos. Arguably the biggest star is Tom Hanks, who appears as himself in a commercial advertising the “New Grand Canyon” where Springfield is planned to be destroyed. Actor and comedian Albert Brooks also voices the movie’s main antagonist, Russ Cargill. And the final cameo is the band Green Day, which starts the movie off by playing a rock version of the classic Simpsons opening theme.
Despite only managing to get three cameos, they’re definitely some of the biggest names to appear on The Simpsons. And since Disney owns the rights to show, they’ve been releasing a number of smaller spin-offs on Disney+, so another Simpsons movie could still happen and feature all those lost cameos.
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