The Simpsons will return for two more years. Fox confirmed a 24th and 25th year for the series, after another round of tense negotiations with the voice cast. Julie Kavner, Nancy Cartwright, Yeardley Smith, Hank Azaria and Harry Shearer are all set to return.

But the cast are believed to have accepted a sharp cut in pay of around 30 per cent according to The Hollywood Reporter, taking the $440,000 they make per episode down to $300,000.

Reports suggested that writers and producers would also see their pay reduced. Shearer apparently offered to take a 70 per cent cut in exchange for a cut of the back end profits, something which Fox refused. As it stands, The Simpsons will return to on October 30 with the new episode Treehouse Of Horrors XXII.