Family Guy has reached a milestone that few TV shows ever see. The animated comedy just aired its 450th episode with the Season 24 premiere, and the team behind the Griffins is opening up about how they have kept the show fresh for over two decades. Executive producers Rich Appel and Alec Sulkin recently shared insights about the show’s secret sauce, and it comes down to one thing: the people in the writers’ room.
The Secret to ‘Family Guy’ Longevity According to Its Producers
When a show survives cancellation, multiple network changes, and 26 years on air, people naturally wonder how it keeps going. For Rich Appel and Alec Sulkin, who have been co-showrunning the series together since Season 16 in 2017, the answer is simple. It is the team they work with every day .
Speaking to Men’s Journal, the producers got real about what makes Family Guy work after all these years. Appel explained that the show’s success comes from a deep bench of talent and characters .
“We have an amazing writing staff who are really inventive. We have a big team of artists and animators and directors, and they populate Quahog with 40, 50 characters you can probably name. And that helps with story. The writers are just so funny.” – Rich Appel
The numbers back this up. Family Guy features dozens of recurring characters, many of them voiced by Seth MacFarlane and Seth Green. This gives the writers endless combinations for stories .
Longtime Writers Bring Consistency to the Griffins
One major factor in the show’s stability is how long the writing team has stayed together. Appel pointed out that the writers’ room feels like a family reunion every day .
“Everybody just knows each other really well. They get their rhythms. We probably have half a dozen writers who have been here for 20 years. It’s such an advantage, because like you are with your closest friends who you’ve known for so long, it’s easier to share. You’re not as afraid of saying something foolish.” – Rich Appel
According to production records, the Family Guy writing staff includes veterans like Steve Callaghan, who has written 23 episodes since 2000 and holds encyclopedic knowledge of the show’s history. Cherry Chevapravatdumrong has authored more than 25 episodes since joining in 2005. These long-term contributors help prevent the show from repeating itself .
Sulkin noted that having Callaghan around is like having a living archive. When the team pitches ideas, they can check with him to make sure they haven’t done something similar in one of the previous 400-plus episodes .
Creative Freedom Keeps the Jokes Coming
Another reason Family Guy has endured is the creative freedom Fox gives the production team. Appel explained that the network understands the show’s brand and mostly stays out of the way .
“They’re a good partner. They give us leeway. They know what the brand is. In terms of standards and practices or the sensor, they’re reasonable. So when they say no and hold fast… they’ve been reasonable on a number of things that I could have expected them to push back on.” – Rich Appel
This freedom matters because many of the show’s best ideas are things that would never make it past a network executive if pitched cold. Appel shared that some of their concepts sound terrible on paper but work because of how they execute them .
“We have some ideas that we just do. But if you boiled it down to what the pitch would be, a network would say, ‘Meh.’” – Rich Appel
Learning From Seth MacFarlane in the Early Days
Both Appel and Sulkin credit series creator Seth MacFarlane with shaping the show’s voice. MacFarlane was in the writers’ room for the first ten seasons, and that experience left a lasting impression on everyone who worked with him .
Sulkin described what it was like writing alongside the man who voices Peter, Stewie, Brian, and Quagmire .
“In the first 10 seasons, when Seth was there in the room with us, obviously that’s a huge advantage. Not only was he the funniest writer in the room, but he was able to pitch his jokes in the exact voice the way we’d be hearing them on the show. It was like a cheat code.” – Alec Sulkin
Appel added that even though MacFarlane is no longer in the room daily, his influence carries on through the writers who learned from him .
“I was lucky enough to have that time in the room with Seth, which is so key to everything we’re still doing. There are a lot of writers who were there for that and to have been in a room with Seth for a decade, hearing him and his take, just let it kind of seep into our sensibilities.” – Rich Appel
The Evolution of the Writers’ Room Culture
The Family Guy writers’ room today is very different from what it was in those early years. Sulkin described the early days as competitive, with everyone trying to get MacFarlane’s attention .
“Back in those days, the writers’ room was a little more cutthroat. People were really vying for Seth’s attention, approval, trying to get as much on the show as they could. It became almost like a numbers game, but still really funny people.” – Alec Sulkin
Now, things have changed. The room is more relaxed, even though the comedy remains sharp .
“Over the years, and certainly where we are now, the room is such a nice place — people are still great at their job, but I think getting longer pick-ups, having been on this long, everybody has just kind of relaxed into their comedy more.” – Alec Sulkin
Appel joked that the team still desperately wants MacFarlane’s approval, but they have learned to hide it better .
The 450th Episode Brings Something New
The show’s milestone 450th episode, titled “The Edible Arrangement,” aired as the Season 24 premiere on February 15, 2026 at 9:30 p.m. ET on Fox . The episode takes an unexpected turn by having Lois finally understand what Stewie is saying, thanks to Brian’s edibles.
This premise shows how the show keeps finding fresh angles even after all these years. Sulkin explained how they approach milestone episodes .
“We don’t really set out saying, ‘This one is going to be 450, let’s make it great, guys.’ It’s more like we are doing our episodes, we know 450 is coming up and it’s going to be our season premiere. Then we can look at our pool of episodes: ‘We could potentially make it any one of these, which one do we like best?’” – Alec Sulkin
Appel added that the production schedule runs more than a year ahead, so they have plenty of time to choose the right episode for big moments .
What’s Coming in Family Guy Season 24
Season 24 has more in store beyond the Lois and Stewie episode. The logline for the season teases some wild adventures .
“Also this season Peter and the guys get shipwrecked on Fire Island, Chris and Brian perform a lobotomy on a social-media-crazed Stewie, and Lois and Meg take their love for pumpkin spice latte to criminal extremes.” – Family Guy Season 24 Logline
Fox has also changed up the schedule for 2026. The network is airing two new episodes of Family Guy each Sunday night. The show premiered on February 15 and will air at 8:00 p.m. ET starting the following week, with a second new episode closing out the Animation Domination block at 9:30 p.m. ET .
The Show Is Locked in for Years to Come
Fans do not have to worry about Family Guy going anywhere anytime soon. In April 2025, Fox announced a massive renewal deal. The network picked up the show for seasons 24 through 27 , guaranteeing new episodes through at least 2029 .
The renewal was part of a larger deal that also locked in The Simpsons, Bob’s Burgers, and brought American Dad! back to Fox. The network cited strong streaming numbers as a reason for the confidence in these animated shows. Family Guy reportedly pulled in 44.24 billion viewing minutes on streaming platforms .
Michael Thorn, President of Entertainment for Fox Entertainment, has previously called Family Guy a key pillar of the network’s success .
The Cutaway Gag Formula
One signature element of Family Guy is the cutaway gag. These quick, often unrelated jokes have become a trademark of the show. Sulkin shared that there is no strict formula for where they go, but they tend to appear in the first two-thirds of each episode .
Appel noted that cutaway gags have taken on new life in the streaming era .
“Given social media, a 20- or 30-second cutaway is often going to be seen by more people than the entire episode on Hulu.” – Rich Appel
This means a single joke can reach millions of viewers who may never watch the full episode, introducing new audiences to the show’s humor.
Staying Fresh After All These Years
With more than 450 episodes in the can and four more seasons on the way, the challenge of avoiding repetition is real. Appel explained that the show’s large cast of characters helps with this .
“The beauty is that on a show like ours, in a show like ‘The Simpsons,’ when you think about it, most half-hour comedies have five or six characters, because that’s what the budget can afford. We have 40 characters you could name — a dozen of them voiced by Seth MacFarlane, Seth Green. We have this great ability to populate a whole town, and that just helps us think of stories, how to recombine characters.” – Rich Appel
The team also keeps an eye on what The Simpsons has done to avoid overlapping storylines. Appel, who got his start writing on The Simpsons, remembered thinking after 200 episodes that it would be impossible to come up with new stories. Now that show has passed 800 episodes, proving there is always more to say .
Where to Watch Family Guy
Family Guy airs Sunday nights on Fox as part of the Animation Domination lineup. New episodes stream the next day on Hulu . The show is also available on various streaming platforms and syndication worldwide.
For international viewers, check local listings for broadcast times in the UK, Canada, Australia, and India. The show’s massive library of episodes means there is always plenty to watch for new fans just discovering Quahog.
The 450th episode is now available for streaming, and Season 24 continues with double episodes each Sunday on Fox.
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