The Simpsons is older than the word meh (a term popularized by the show). It’s older than Millie Bobby Brown and Barron Trump combined. As of its upcoming 31st season, Fox’s animated sitcom will have lasted longer than the 30 Years’ War, with fewer casualties—Maude Flanders and Bleeding Gums Murphy notwithstanding. “I think there are more people alive who don’t remember a world without The Simpsons than ones that do,” says showrunner Al Jean.

Since its 1989 debut, the comedy has been nominated for outstanding animated series at the Emmys 28 times. To celebrate, Vanity Fair asked Fox’s vice president of animation, Julius Preite, to imagine how America’s first family might look if they posed for a photo shoot in the style of Vanity Fair’s annual Hollywood Issue—klieg lights and all.

Their serene expressions mirror the easy confidence of Jean, who makes it sound like keeping the show feeling vital is still as simple as whistling Danny Elfman’s bouncy theme song. “Each generation can find something fresh that’s wrong with the world that we can pick on,” he says. The series can also take comfort in its eerie knack for seeming to augur the future, including the Disney/Fox merger and Trump’s election.

But will The Simpsons stick around for another three decades? That’s one thing Jean won’t try to guess: “You know, I have no way to predict,” he says. “But I would just say, don’t bet against The Simpsons.”

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