'Bob's Burgers' Season 14 Production Stalled as Animators Run out of New Scripts
Season 14 of 'Bob's Burgers' is still set to premiere on Sunday, Oct. 1 on Fox.
The upcoming 14th season of Bob's Burgers is officially on hold. Bubble Blabber reports that production on the animated Fox series has paused in the midst of the ongoing WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes. A storyboard animator on Bob's Burgers is no longer working and likely won't return until the strike is resolved. 17 episodes of the series have already been written, animated, and mostly completed, which is why it is still premiering on Fox this fall.
This pause could be previewing what animated shows might be going through in the next several weeks. Fox's Animation Domination lineup on Sundays for the fall is staying intact, at least for now. It seems like shows are starting to run out of scripts, and if the studios and writers continue to be in disagreement, animated shows might soon feel the heat. Bob's Burgers seasons typically run for an average of 22 episodes in recent years. 17 is not a bad number, but hopefully, the contracts will be resolved soon, and things will go back to normal.
Although Fox's fall 2023 schedule is mostly made up of unscripted series, fans are still able to look forward to the network's beloved Animation Domination lineup. Along with Bob's Burgers, fans can also look forward to the returns of The Simpsons and Family Guy, as well as new series Krapopolis. It's unknown what their seasons will look like, but viewers should prepare for shortened seasons just in case. At least there are still new seasons, so there will be some semblance of normalcy on the fall schedule, even if just for a little bit.
Back in May, it was reported that Family Guy creator and star Seth MacFarlane walked out of production along with the showrunners and the showrunners on American Dad in solidarity. MacFarlane also said that no one would be working on their series while the strike continues. If his sentiment is still true, then it might not be long until Family Guy also runs out of scripts. Animated TV might be going dark soon if nothing changes.
In the meantime, fans can watch new episodes of Bob's Burgers beginning Sunday, Oct. 1 at 9 p.m. ET on Fox. Episodes should be airing at least through early spring if production continues to be on hold for who knows how long. Hopefully, the strikes are resolved soon, but viewers may want to break out the Hulu and rewatch the series to keep them occupied.