Stewie Finally Said His First Word In The ‘Family Guy’ Season Premiere

Stewie is the most loquacious member of the Griffin family (which is to say, he would use words like “loquacious”), but only to us, the Family Guy viewers — to Peter, Lois, Chris, and Meg, he didn’t say his first word until Sunday’s season 19 premiere. In the episode, the aptly-titled “Stewie’s First Word,” the one-year-old screams “f*ck” during a crowded church service after learning that coffee service will not include Chewy Chips Ahoy cookies. “Hey, Stewie said his first word. And it was a swear,” Chris responds, helpfully.

“This episode showcases Stewie’s first word in the traditional sense that parents always document: the first word they understand,” executive producers Rich Appel and Alec Sulkin told TVLine. “Otherwise, yes, it’s Stewie’s 1,345,693th word.” Later in the episode, Brian asks, “I don’t get it, Stewie, you’ve been talking forever. Why did everyone suddenly understand you now” Stewie responds, “I don’t know. I was feeling such intense emotion in the moment, and that one word somehow just burst through.” In other words, like time travel in a science-fiction movie, don’t ask questions; just accept it.

As for why they picked “f*ck” as Stewie’s first word, Appel and Sulkin explained:

“This first word had to be Stewie’s first word. It’s in the Talmud.”

Another big change coming to Family Guy: the voice of Cleveland Brown. Arif Zahir will replace Mike Henry as Peter’s drinking buddy next season.