Disney+ “The Simpsons” Aspect Ratio Problem Update
When Disney+ launched in November, one problem that quickly came to light was the aspect ratio of the earlier seasons of “The Simpsons”, since the shows had be formatted for a widescreen 16:9 aspect ratio, which means it crops out many of the visual gags. Fans quickly requested the shows be available stream in the correct 4:3 ratio, which Disney said they would be fixing.
Disney took to Twitter to update fans on this problem:
We appreciate our fans’ patience and are working to make the first 19 Seasons (and part of 20) of #TheSimpsons available in 4:3 versions on #DisneyPlus. We expect to accomplish this by the end of May.
The first 19 seasons were filmed in the 4:3 ratio and 20th Century Fox had previously made episodes available in both formats through its “Simpsons World” app, until it closed down when Disney+ was about to launch.
Here is an example of how the cropping can remove a joke
This gag shows how Duff, Duff Lite and Duff Dry all come from the same pipe, but in the cropped version, this is lost.
Are you watching “The Simpsons” now on Disney+?