For over three decades, The Simpsons has mastered the art of parody, skewering pop culture icons, politicians, and filmmakers with wit and irreverence. But the show’s latest episode, “The Day of the Jack-Up,” stands out for a rare reason: it devotes an entire story, not just a “Treehouse of Horror” segment, to parodying one of M. Night Shyamalan’s most recent and underrated thrillers, Trap.
The episode delivers more than a humorous send-up. It reimagines the suspense and structure of Shyamalan’s 2024 serial-killer film through the lens of Springfield absurdity, with Bart Simpson stepping into the role once filled by Josh Hartnett’s unnervingly composed murderer. The result is a biting satire of both true crime obsession and the chaos of modern fandom and a surprisingly smart showcase of how The Simpsons can still reinvent itself after 35 seasons.
“We wanted to honour Shyamalan’s knack for twists,” said showrunner Matt Selman in an interview with Entertainment Weekly. “But of course, this is The Simpsons, so our twist had to be dumb, funny, and strangely heartfelt.”
Overview: “The Day of the Jack-Up” Episode Breakdown
| Category | Details |
|---|---|
| Episode Title | “The Day of the Jack-Up” |
| Season | Season 36, Episode 8 — Aired November 2025 |
| Parody Target | Trap (2024), directed by M. Night Shyamalan |
| Primary Plotline | Bart becomes a ticket scalper known as “The SeatMiser” and gets trapped by the FBI at a K-pop concert |
| Guest Stars | Paget Brewster (FBI Profiler), Harry Shearer (Otto & Squeaky-Voiced Teen), Yeardley Smith (Lisa) |
| Key Themes | AI misuse, true-crime obsession, ticket scalping, surveillance culture |
| Tone | Satirical crime-thriller parody with social commentary |
| Ending Twist | Bart’s phone Face ID fails to identify him because it uses his butt, not his face |
How ‘The Simpsons’ Turned Shyamalan’s Thriller into Springfield Satire?
In “The Day of the Jack-Up,” Lisa (voiced by Yeardley Smith) desperately wants to attend a concert by the fictional K-pop group The Kneesock Dolls, held at a new spherical venue called The Circulus, a pointed jab at Las Vegas’s futuristic Sphere arena. Tickets sell out instantly thanks to bots, frustrating Springfield residents, including Ned Flanders, who can’t even score seats for an ABBA tribute show called The Garden of Sweden.
Enter the episode’s antagonist: The SeatMiser, a mysterious scalper using AI to buy and resell tickets at outrageous prices. When the FBI gets involved, profiler Agent Brewster deduces that the SeatMiser won’t resist attending the concert himself, a trap that mirrors the setup of Shyamalan’s Trap, where a serial killer unknowingly walks into a concert swarming with law enforcement.
The reveal? The SeatMiser is none other than Bart Simpson (Nancy Cartwright), who’s been using his illicit profits to fund massive public pranks, declaring “Skinner Sucks.” Bart’s cleverness backfires when the FBI uses the concert as bait to catch him.
From “Trap” to “The Day of the Jack-Up”: A Parody That Mirrors the Source
In Trap, Josh Hartnett plays Cooper Abbott, a serial killer known as “The Butcher,” who takes his daughter to a pop concert only to realise it’s a sting operation. The Simpsons mirrors this concept almost beat for beat, minus the bloodshed, using Bart’s mischief in place of Abbott’s violence.
“We thought, what if the killer was Bart and the crime was something incredibly stupid like ticket scalping?” said Al Jean, executive producer. “It’s both a parody and a commentary on how everything’s a crime now if AI’s involved.”
The episode even includes visual parallels to Trap:
- The FBI control room, complete with live feeds of concertgoers.
- Bart’s attempt to destroy his phone, mirroring Abbott’s frantic cover-up.
- The profiler’s calm narration juxtaposed with escalating panic.
- A Face ID gag, replacing Shyamalan’s moral twist with The Simpsons’ trademark immaturity.
By the time the profiler scans every Springfield Elementary student in attendance, only for Bart’s phone to fail recognition because his Face ID is his butt, the episode cements itself as classic Simpsons absurdism.
Why ‘Trap’ Was the Perfect Shyamalan Film to Parody?
While Shyamalan’s Trap divided critics, many hailed it as one of his most underappreciated works, a film about obsession, surveillance, and the blurring line between entertainment and exploitation. Those themes translate perfectly into The Simpsons’ brand of social satire.
| Theme in Shyamalan’s Trap | Simpsons Parody Equivalent |
|---|---|
| A killer hiding in plain sight | Bart’s identity as the SeatMiser |
| Surveillance and entrapment | The FBI’s AI-driven ticket sting |
| Public spectacle and morality | The Circulus concert chaos |
| Moral ambiguity and guilt | Bart’s glee vs. Lisa’s ethics |
| Twisted parent-child dynamic | Sibling conflict and comedic teamwork |
The result is an episode that works both as a tribute and a critique, acknowledging Shyamalan’s signature tension while turning it into a vehicle for jokes about AI, fandom culture, and algorithmic capitalism.
A Subtle Meta-Joke About Modern Hollywood
One of the episode’s slyest touches is its meta-commentary on Hollywood’s obsession with true crime and AI. The FBI profiler, voiced by Paget Brewster, jokes that “documentaries and podcasts catch serial killers now,” freeing her up to “fight this new, highly irritating breed of semi-crime.” It’s a line that doubles as satire on both pop culture’s fixation with real-life monsters and the way digital tools have transformed petty crime into federal theatre.
“The Face ID gag might be the dumbest thing we’ve ever written,” said Selman, laughing. “But it’s also the smartest joke about surveillance we’ve done since the NSA episode.”
Why This Parody Matters?
What makes “The Day of the Jack-Up” noteworthy is how The Simpsons chooses not to relegate the parody to a Treehouse of Horror segment. Instead, it commits fully, allowing the tone to shift from suspenseful to surreal without losing coherence.
This full-episode homage demonstrates that even after more than 750 episodes, The Simpsons can still reinvent pop culture commentary in ways that feel fresh, relevant, and layered. It’s both a loving tribute to a misunderstood filmmaker and a reminder that The Simpsons remains television’s most elastic mirror of society.
“It’s the kind of parody that reminds you why The Simpsons became a cultural institution,” said Dr. Nina Greene, a pop culture historian at NYU. “It’s funny, pointed, and oddly insightful about how our world runs on both technology and nonsense.”
Cultural Reflection: The Simpsons Still Know How to Surprise Us
Even after 36 seasons, The Simpsons continues to evolve with pop culture. “The Day of the Jack-Up” proves that the show doesn’t just recycle nostalgia, it retools it. By turning Shyamalan’s Trap into a vehicle for humour about digital ethics, AI absurdity, and fandom chaos, it reaffirms the series’ place as both a chronicler and critic of contemporary entertainment.
As The Simpsons enters its next era, its latest parody reminds us that true satire, much like a good Shyamalan twist, still works best when you least expect it.
Frequently Asked Questions
It parodies Trap (2024), focusing on the concept of a criminal being unknowingly trapped by the FBI at a concert.
The profiler is voiced by Paget Brewster, best known for Criminal Minds and Community.
A fictional spherical concert venue parodying The Sphere in Las Vegas, where the episode’s climax unfolds.
Bart’s phone is recovered by the FBI, but their Face ID scan fails because his recognition feature is linked to his butt, not his face.
It’s the first time an M. Night Shyamalan film has been directly and exclusively parodied in a full episode, rather than as part of Treehouse of Horror.
