The Simpsons: What Happened To Troy McClure

Here’s what happened to one of The Simpsons‘ most beloved ancillary characters, Troy McClure (voiced by Phil Hartman). You might remember Troy from such Simpsons episodes as “A Fish Called Selma”, where he infamously married Marge’s sister Selma Bouvier (Julie Kavner) to revive his stalled career in show business. Now that the first 30 seasons of The Simpsons are available to stream on Disney+, fans can enjoy Troy’s career all over again – until he’s written out of the series.

Troy McClure was a washed-up Hollywood actor who had his heyday in the 1970s, starring in such films as The President’s Neck Is Missing and They Came To Burgle Carnegie Hall. Unfortunately, his “romantic abnormality” – a sexual attraction to fish – became publicly known, which torpedoed his career. By the time of The Simpsons‘ debut, Troy was now living in Springfield where he hosted a slew of late-night infomercials such as I Can’t Believe They Invented It! and educational/self-help videos like Lead Paint: Delicious But Deadly and The Decapitation of Larry Leadfoot. Troy’s first appearance was in The Simpsons season 2 episode “Homer vs. Lisa and the 8th Commandment” and he was a popular recurring character until his final episode in The Simpsons season 10, “Bart the Mother”.

The heartbreaking reason that Troy and Phil Hartman’s other adored character, the hapless attorney Lionel Hutz, were respectfully written out of The Simpsons is because Hartman was tragically murdered. On May 27, 1998, Hartman was shot and killed in his sleep by his wife Brynn after a heated argument; Brynn was an alcoholic and had used cocaine and taken Zoloft before she murdered Phil and then took her own life. Phil Hartman was an extremely popular cast member on Saturday Night Live who was renowned as a “utility man” able play myriad characters like Frank Sinatra and Telly Savalas. On The Simpsons, Hartman was a revered guest star who appeared in 52 episodes and provided voices for other characters like Tom, Bart’s “bigger brother” in The Simpsons season 4 episode “Brother From The Same Planet”; the role of Tom was originally written for Tom Cruise but Hartman stepped in when the superstar declined the role. Hartman was also cast as Zapp Brannigan in Futurama before his death; Billy West took over the role.

Of course, Troy McClure is best remembered for “A Fish Called Selma”, an episode that showcased Hartman’s talent, including singing. Thanks to his wedding (to a woman) reinvigorating his career, Troy was cast by his agent McArthur Parker (Jeff Goldblum) in “as the human” in the musical “Stop The Planet of the Apes, I Want to Get Off!”. In “the part [Troy] was born to play”, Hartman performed the unforgettable songs “Dr. Zaius” and “Chimpan-A to Chimpan-Z”. Before his death, Hartman hoped to star in a live-action Troy McClure movie “publicizing his Betty Ford [Clinic] appearances”, The Simpsons creator Matt Groening said that the idea of a Troy McClure movie “never got further than enthusiasm”.

Like Krusty the Clown, Troy provided some local star-power to Springfield as one of the town’s resident celebrities and he was an excellent vehicle for exploring the more unfortunate side of fame and fortune. Ironically, Troy was also sought after as an emcee for funerals and he hosted such memorial services as Andre the Giant, We Hardly Knew Ye and Shemp Howard, Today We Mourn a Stooge. After Phil Hartman’s death, Troy McClure, Lionel Hutz, and his numerous other characters were respectfully retired and their absence has been felt from The Simpsonsever since – but at least fans can relive Troy McClure’s glory days whenever they want on Disney+.

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