Diogo Jota's death to Donald Trump's shooting: 10 fake Simpsons predictions that took internet by storm

The Simpsons is often credited with predicting major world events accurately. However, not all claims are true. Here are 10 viral predictions from the show that never actually happened, despite taking the internet by storm.

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Diogo Jota's death

A viral video claims that The Simpsons predicted the shocking death of Liverpool and Portugal star Diogo Jota and his younger brother, Andre Silva, who were killed in a car crash in Spain on July 3. The video shows what looks like an episode from the long-running cartoon, featuring a Portuguese footballer named “Yogo Jota” in a red number 20 shirt — the same number Jota wore at Liverpool. However, The Simpsons never aired any episode remotely resembling this storyline ever. The video currently circulating online has all the hallmarks of being AI-generated or edited.

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George Floyd's death

In June 2020, fake images claiming The Simpsons predicted George Floyd's death went viral. One showed Chief Wiggum kneeling on a Black man as Lisa held a Justice for George sign. However, the image was fan art created by Instagram user Yuri Pomo which was made after George Floyd's death and not from any episode.

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Donald Trump assassination

An image from the TV show depicting US President Donald Trump lying in a coffin re-emerged in 2024 after an alleged assassination attempt made on him. However, this image is not from the show and has been digitally altered or fabricated. The rumours first surfaced online in February 2017.

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Rebranding of Twitter to X

A claim was made that an episode of the show predicted the Twitter rebranding to X, after Elon Musk acquired the social media platform. However, it was digitally manipulated. A reverse-image search of the claim showed the unaltered version of the image posted in 2012 and 2014.

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Invention of autocorrect

In the 1994 episode "Lisa on Ice," a gag showing text changing from "Beat Up Martin" to "Eat Up Martha" led many to claim The Simpsons predicted autocorrect. However, Microsoft Word had already featured autocorrect since 1993. However, the joke did influence the development of autocorrect on the first iPhone, as Apple engineers reportedly used “Eat Up Martha” as a reminder of how frustrating bad autocorrect could be during early testing.

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COVID-19 pandemic

One of the most widely shared claims is the prediction of the COVID-19 pandemic. This stems from a 1993 episode titled Marge in Chains, where a fictional Osaka Flu spreads through Springfield after arriving from Japan. While the episode does show a viral outbreak, it was intended as a satire of past flu epidemics, not a prediction of a future pandemic.

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Notre Dame Cathedral fire

After the Notre Dame Cathedral fire in 2019, a fake image was circulated showing the cathedral burning. While the cathedral appeared in the episode Husbands and Knives, it wasn’t shown burning. The scene was actually a parody of The Hunchback of Notre Dame, not a prediction of the future. The viral image was digitally altered.

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Disappearance of MH370

After the disappearance of Malaysian Airlines Flight MH370 in 2014, rumors spread online that The Simpsons had predicted the tragedy. Some posts featured edited images or falsely claimed that an episode showed a plane vanishing under mysterious circumstances. In reality, The Simpsons has never featured a storyline involving a missing commercial flight resembling MH370.

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Silicon Valley Bank crash

Silicon Valley Bank collapsed after a stock crash triggered a bank run on March 10, 2023. Some users shared edited images or vague references to bank failures in older episodes as supposed proof. While the show featured general themes of financial crises, bank runs, and economic instability in various comedic contexts, these videos and images were manipulated.

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Titan submersible implosion

No episode of The Simpsons predicted a five-person submersible going missing near the Titanic site in June 2023. After the Titan submersible tragedy, fake clips and altered images circulated online claiming the show had foreseen the event. However, these were either edited or taken out of context.