Springfield Goes Open-Source: Disney Hands ‘The Simpsons’ to Fortnite Creators

Disney's move to open The Simpsons to Fortnite's developer community is rippling across the industry, with Variety reporting fresh details from Epic's Unreal Fest. The toolkit lets third-party creators build authentic Simpsons games for the first time — the latest fruit of Disney's $1.5 billion investment in Epic Games.

Springfield Goes Open-Source: Disney Hands ‘The Simpsons’ to Fortnite Creators

D'oh! Homer, Marge, Bart and the rest of The Simpsons are about to run riot across Fortnite in a brand-new way — and the move is lighting up the gaming and entertainment world. Disney and Epic Games are handing the keys to Springfield to Fortnite's global developer community, letting creators build "fully authentic" Simpsons games for the very first time.

The Buzz

The story is making the rounds after Variety reported fresh details from Epic's Unreal Fest Chicago 2026, where the partnership was unveiled — and it's being amplified alongside Disney's own official announcement. The reason it's resonating: this isn't just another character skin. It's Disney opening one of TV's most iconic franchises to outside creators, a notable escalation of its ambitions inside Fortnite.

What Disney and Epic Announced

The companies confirmed that The Simpsons is joining Fortnite's IP Partner Program, giving third-party developers the tools to create games using the animated franchise's characters and settings. The Simpsons game-development tools for Fortnite are slated to arrive later this year, built on the Unreal Editor for Fortnite (UEFN). Notably, the companies declined to share details on revenue-sharing programs for participating developers — a detail the industry will be watching closely.

"I can't wait to see what the Fortnite superfans and 'The Simpsons' superfans come up with!" said Matt Selman, executive producer and showrunner of The Simpsons.

Part of Disney's $1.5 Billion Epic Bet

This is the latest initiative to come out of Disney's $1.5 billion investment in Epic, announced back in February 2024. And The Simpsons are no strangers to Fortnite: in November 2025, Disney and Epic launched a month-long battle royale season featuring the 80-player Springfield Island. According to Disney, that season reached 80 million unique players with a cumulative 750 million hours played — staggering numbers that help explain why Springfield was tapped as the next big toolkit.

"The Star Wars developers kit was a validating first step. Now, after the very successful Simpsons takeover of Fortnite, we're bringing these iconic characters to UEFN. We're excited to continue this journey with Epic and look forward to sharing more about this ambitious universe in the months ahead." — Sean Shoptaw, EVP of Disney Games and Digital Entertainment

Built on the Star Wars Blueprint

Disney and Epic previously handed Star Wars intellectual property to Fortnite developers with an official toolkit, and the results were eye-popping: nearly 8 million players engaged with third-party Star Wars games within the first 72 hours, and FOAD's Droid Tycoon became the second most-played game in Fortnite during the BB-8 Event that ran May 9–10, 2026. The Simpsons toolkit, built with 20th Century Studios and Gracie Films, follows the same playbook.

"Together with Disney, we've seen what happens when beloved franchises are put in the hands of Fortnite creators," said Adam Sussman, president of Epic Games. "Players respond when their favorite characters and stories are handled with care."

Why Fans Are Buzzing

For Disney fans and gamers alike, the appeal is obvious: imagine player-built experiences set inside Moe's Tavern, the Kwik-E-Mart, or the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant, designed not by a single studio but by an entire creative community. Ray Gresko, senior VP and head of product and development at Disney Digital Entertainment, put it simply — "The Simpsons has been making people laugh for over 35 years," and now those creators get to decide what Springfield looks like in Fortnite. With the toolkit due later this year, the only question left is what the internet's most imaginative builders will dream up first.