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No. The viral image showing Donald Trump in a coffin was not shown in a Simpsons episode. Lead Stories reported that the artwork had circulated online years before the July 13, 2024, shooting in Butler, Pennsylvania, and had been debunked as early as 2017.
What the viral image actually shows
The image depicts Trump in a coffin in a scene styled to resemble The Simpsons. Lead Stories’ July 14, 2024, fact-check concluded that it “never appeared in a ‘Simpsons’ episode.” The outlet reported that the image first appeared online in early 2017 and was already being debunked that year.
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Lead Stories traced the artwork to a 4Chan post before it spread through Spanish-language media. That is the fact-check’s account of the image’s provenance, not a separately established forensic finding about its creator.
Why it was linked to a real episode
Lead Stories identified the season 19 episode “Funeral for a Fiend” as a likely visual source for the hoax. That episode includes a funeral scene centered on Sideshow Bob; Lead Stories pointed to similarities in the casket, roses, and church windows. The outlet described it as a likely model, not proven authorship.
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The image also drew on a separate real moment: Trump’s escalator ride at Trump Tower on June 16, 2015, when he announced his presidential campaign. Lead Stories noted that the artwork was made after that event, so it was not a prior prediction of the escalator scene.
What happened in Butler—and what the FBI said
The shooting took place at a Trump rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on July 13, 2024. In a statement dated July 14, the FBI said one victim died and Trump and other spectators were injured. The FBI said it was investigating the incident as an assassination attempt and potential domestic terrorism.
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In that dated update, the Bureau said early information indicated the shooter acted alone, while investigators were still checking for possible co-conspirators and had not identified a motive. Those details describe the FBI’s public position at that point; they should not be read as a summary of every later development.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.The separate Trump reference in “Bart to the Future”
The Simpsons did make a distinct Trump reference in the 2000 episode “Bart to the Future.” In a scene set in the future, President Lisa refers to a budget crisis inherited from “President Trump.” That joke is separate from the coffin image and does not show that the series depicted or predicted the 2024 shooting.
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What this fact-check establishes
- The specific viral coffin image was not shown in a Simpsons episode, according to Lead Stories.
- The image predates the Butler shooting by years; Lead Stories reported that it was online and debunked as early as 2017.
- A resemblance to a scene in “Funeral for a Fiend” is not proof that the show created the image or predicted the event.
- This conclusion concerns the coffin image and the claim that it predicted the Butler shooting. It does not establish that no episode of The Simpsons has ever depicted political violence or an assassination.
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