As expected, this decision seems to hinge exclusively on Fox’s financial considerations. Last week the studio released a statement saying that it “cannot produce future seasons under its current financial model,” and that it will have to trim the budget of each episode by 25-30%

Considering the network only wants the show for another season after this one, it’s easy to see why they’re playing hardball. The show is limping along in its twilight years, so they’re not going to extend themselves for a 24th season unless they can do it on their terms, voice actors be damned.

All in all, a cancellation this season or next seems like a small price to pay to get people to stop smugly saying they don’t watch The Simpsons anymore because the quality’s fallen off.