| When Billie Met Lisa | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Directed by | David Silverman |
| Written by |
|
| Based on | The Simpsons byMatt Groening |
| Produced by | |
| Starring | |
| Music by | Bleeding Fingers Music |
Production companies | |
| Distributed by | Disney+ (Disney Platform Distribution) |
Release date |
|
Running time | 3 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
When Billie Met Lisa is ananimated short film based on the American singerBillie Eilish, produced byGracie Films and20th Television Animation, debuting on the streaming serviceDisney+.[1] It is the sixth short film inThe Simpsons franchise, and the fourth promotional short produced for Disney+.[2] Like the previous shorts, it was directed byDavid Silverman and released on April 22, 2022.[3]
Lisa is playing her saxophone on the couch, when she receives a message on her phone byHomer to stop playing so he can work in peace.Marge comes in the room to clean up and starts bothering her, cleaning the sax too. Lisa moves to the treehouse, butBart starts using a chainsaw to bother her too, so she relocates to the music class at the school, where she finds other kids playing. Not finding peace, she relocates under an overpass, where a car stops nearby, andBillie Eilish notices her and invites her to jam at arecording studio owned by Billie, where they playthe Simpsons theme and everyone in Springfield appreciates it, while Bart talks about Lisa with Billie's brother,Finneas O'Connell. In the end they end up stargazing above the car where they discussher family appreciating her music.
ProducerJames L. Brooks came up with the idea of making a film with Billie Eilish during a conversation withAl Jean. They worked withDisney+ to arrange it, as they had already collaborated with Eilish onHappier Than Ever: A Love Letter to Los Angeles.[4]
When Billie Met Lisa was released on Disney+ on April 22, 2022.[5]
Rich Knight ofCinemaBlend rankedWhen Billie Met Lisa fourth in their top ofThe Simpsons shorts, praised the humor of the short film, and complimented the references to Billie Eilish and her work.[6] Paul Bradshaw ofNME found agreeable that the short film provides gags centered on Eilish and O'Connell, praised the new record of The Simpsons Theme, and complimented the end credits for its humor.[7] Mike Celestino ofLaughingPlace.com gave a positive review, writing, "On the whole,When Billie Met Lisa makes for a fun diversion that is sure to delight crossover fans ofThe Simpsons and Eilish, though a few of the jokes do fall flat here and there, and like the other above-mentioned shorts it goes by very quickly."[8]
John Schwarz ofBubbleblabber gaveWhen Billie Met Lisa an eight out of ten stating "A few solid jokes jab in before the climax make this a delicious morsel of a snack though I do hope that Billie comes back in the future because it seems the gag department had a bunch of early fun with her that I think can be more fully fleshed out across 22-minutes."[9]
Stacey Henley ofTheGamer complimented the humor ofWhen Billie Met Lisa across its gags, acknowledged the references of Eilish and her work, but stated that the short film should have provided a full story and more screen time for Eilish and O'Connell.[10] Jeremy Brown ofWhat'sOnDisneyPlus.com gave the short 2 out of 5, writing, "I’m just not sure what the point of this was other than to put Billie Eilish in aThe Simpsons short. It’s all technically well done. The animation is beautiful. The voice acting is wonderful. Objectively, there’s nothing wrong with it, but, subjectively, I still don’t get why it needed to be done."[11]
The short was nominated for anPrimetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Short Form Animated Program at thePrimetime Emmy Awards.[12][13]
The episode provoked some controversy with Simpsons fans online after its release, due to the ending scene with Lisa saying that Homer never supported her, due to the continuity issues of previous episodes in which Homer was supportive, such as "Lisa's Sax".[14]
| Studio albums |
|
|---|---|
| Live albums |
|
| Extended plays |
|
| Tours | |
| Films | |
| Family | |
Films directed byDavid Silverman | |
|---|---|
| Features |
|
| Shorts |
|
