The "Antibiotic-Resistant Superbugs" (Episode: "Homer vs. Dignity" 2001)

The Simpsons has earned quite the reputation for seemingly predicting the future. It’s actually a bit of a meme at this point, with fans pointing out how many things in the real world appear to have been "predicted" by the show, sometimes years in advance. While some of these predictions are purely coincidental or the result of broad satire, others do seem oddly prescient.

The "Antibiotic-Resistant Superbugs" (Episode: "Homer vs. Dignity" 2001)

• What happened: In the episode, Homer gets sick and is shown battling a particularly tough strain of bacteria that is resistant to typical antibiotics. This hints at the emergence of superbugs.
• Reality: Over the next two decades, antibiotic-resistant bacteria became a growing public health concern. Superbugs, like MRSA and other strains, have become more resistant to common antibiotics, and the medical community has been struggling to develop new treatments to fight these evolving threats.