Wait, did The Simpsons foretell the disappearance of the Titanic submarine?
Fans appear to believe so, since frightening footage from a previous episode of Homer’s underwater ‘treasure trip’ has emerged.
It comes as time runs out for the missing Titan submarine, which has been lost in the water since Sunday (June 18).
The craft, carrying five passengers, aimed to examine the submerged Titanic ship’s wreckage until something went wrong, leaving all onboard struggling for their lives with dwindling oxygen levels.
In classic Simpsons fashion, viewers believe they had a foreshadowing of what was to come…
The Simpsons Tide episode, which first aired in 2016, shows Homer on a trip to reunite with his long-lost father, Mason.
However, Homer’s submersible becomes caught in a coral tunnel during their treasure hunt.
In a clip shared to social media, Mason says: ‘Today I’m filled with joy, searching for treasure with my long lost son.
‘My dream for each of you is that you find the happiness I feel today.’
‘These waters contain some of Mother Nature’s most stunning creatures.’
The two then set out to investigate a sunken ship – does this sound familiar?
‘Homer, look! The treasure of Piso Mojado,’ Mason says.
But it isn’t long until Homer becomes disoriented, pursuing a fish into a cave and mistaking it for his father (somehow).
The beloved character desperately tries to escape, and, perhaps most disturbingly, his control panel flashes with a ‘oxygen low’ indicator.
He then watched it turn red and said, “Oxygen gone.”
Fortunately, Homer was able to escape but passed out in the sub.
He was discovered but died three days later in the hospital.
Naturally, the entire situation has given the internet the creeps, as the cartoon has become famous for accurately anticipating important events.
‘Crazy how the Simpsons already predicted about the missing submarine’, one person tweeted.
‘Ain’t no way the simpsons predicted the submarine incident’, another wrote.
‘Idk what surprises y’all of the lost submarine in the Atlantic that went down to see the remains of the Titanic. The Simpsons had already warned us’, another added.
Another unsettling discovery is that the show was produced by Mike Reiss, who has gone on trips with Titanic subsidiary OceanGate trips.
The showrunner went on three different dives, and has said that they ‘almost always lost communication’.
The producer recounted his experiences on BBC Breakfast this week, saying he wasn’t ‘optimistic’ about the missing passengers being discovered alive, but that they understood what they were ‘getting themselves into.’
‘If it’s down at the bottom I don’t know how anyone is going to be able to access it, much less bring it back up,’ he began.
‘I got on the sub and at the back of my mind was, “Well, I may never get off this thing,” that’s always with you.’
He said that the hazards are made obvious to existing travellers based on their experience.
‘People should know, to even get on the boat that takes you to the Titanic, you sign a massive waiver that lists one way after another that you could die on the trip,’ he said, adding that the documents mention death ‘three times on page one’.
‘Nobody who is in this situation was caught off guard. It’s very bad things broke this way but you all know what you’re getting into.
‘It’s really exploration. It’s not a vacation and it’s not thrill-seeking. It’s not like sky diving, or something. These are explorers and travellers who want to see something.’
The submarine’s passengers are claimed to have paid $250,000 (£195k) for the excursion.
British millionaire adventurer Hamish Harding, French diver Paul-Henri Nargeolet, Pakistani businessman Shahzada Dawood and his 19-year-old son Sulaiman Dawood, and OceanGate founder Stockton Rush are all missing.
