Simpsons Death Expected to Be Either Krusty or Sideshow Bob

The season premiere of The Simpsons will feature the death of a recurring character whose voice actor has won an Emmy Award for their performance of the role -- this much has been known for months. But which character?

After comments made by Fox brass at the Television Critics Association this weekend, it sounds like it will be either Krusty the Clown or someone close to him, with both Sideshow Bob and Krusty's father Rabbi Hyman Krustofski potentially on the chopping block.

Krusty the Clown is voiced by Dan Castellaneta, who also voices Homer, while Slideshow Bob is voiced by Kelsey Grammer. Castellaneta also voices Krusty's father most of the time, although it's Jackie Mason, who played the character in three early episodes, who won the Emmy for the role.

The episode is titled "Clown in the Dumps," and most fans are taking that to mean that Krusty is depressed. Being given a short time to live or losing a father could certainliy qualify.

Producer Al Jean goosed speculation that it could be Krusty or Sideshow Bob when he said that the soon-to-be-deceased character could return in a flashback or as a ghost -- something that would seem unlikely for a relatively minor character like Rabbi Krustofski.