A Quarter of a Century on Screen: 'Family Guy' Will Never be the Same Again — the Hero Beloved by Millions was Brutally Killed Once and for All

Since his first appearance in 2000, Ernie the Giant Chicken has become Peter Griffin's most absurd and iconic enemy. Their battles, like a parody action movie inside a sitcom, were tearing houses apart, lasting 5-7 minutes and invariably ending the same way: the chicken "died", but its eyes opened at the end. So, expect a sequel. It was a perfect, endless gag for decades to come. It was.

Now, in season 23, everything has changed. Ernie is killed — and not by Peter, but by Meg. The same one, eternally forgotten and humiliated, this time stood at the center of the plot.

It all started when Meg unexpectedly started an affair with Ernie's son, Nugget. It would seem like a standard absurd plot for Family Guy, but then something unprecedented happened. When the conflict between Meg and the Giant Chicken reached its peak, Ernie declared that he could not "hit a girl." And... Meg simply cut off his head.

The audience sees Meg walking with the severed head of her enemy. And his body rushes around the house without her, literally like... a chicken with a severed head.

The creators of the show first play up to expectations: a slow motion shot, a look at the chicken's body - a classic lead-in to another "resurrection." But... nothing happens. For the first time in 25 years - absolute silence. Not a movement, not a signature wink. The chicken has officially been written off.

And this is not the first time: Family Guy has long learned to say goodbye to iconic gags and characters. The death of Diane Simmons, the disappearance of the evil monkey, the fading of Stewie's desire to kill Lois — all this has happened before. But Ernie's death is a special moment. It is the end of the longest joke in the history of the show.