The Simpsons Ride brings the gleefully chaotic world of the long-running animated series to life before guests’ eyes. The show’s voice cast reprised their iconic roles in the attraction, including Julie Kavner, the voice of Marge Simpson, who we got to speak with about the ride’s anniversary.
“It’s very cool that the ride has already been around for 15 years,” Kavner told us. “I’m glad fans enjoy stepping into Springfield.”
For park guests, riding the attraction is a very different experience from watching “The Simpsons” at home. The voice actors’ process, though, remained the same.
“There was no difference recording for the ride than for an episode of the show,” Kavner said. “We all recorded episodes together in one room, and we did the ride script the same way.” (Note: Post-Covid, the actors record individually).
Their communal technique is evident in the characters’ frenetic chemistry throughout the ride. As the ride’s narrative depicts the ultimate “anything that can go wrong, will go wrong” trope of many theme park attractions, everyone’s favorite animated family is woefully in the middle of the mayhem.
Seeing as The Simpsons Ride takes place in the fictional Krustyland, we asked Kavner what Marge’s ideal day in a theme park might look like.
“Marge would want to make sure the kids had a good time, Bart didn’t destroy anything, and there was something for Maggie to enjoy,” she said. Sadly, the family’s day in Krustyland is just about the opposite of all of those things.