Cartoon Network has been in the middle of major revivals of its classic shows, and the president behind it all teases that there could be even more as the channel shifts away from fully rebooting any of its projects. Cartoon Network has seen a revival period in the last few years as the creators or creative teams behind some of its classic franchises have been making their respective returns for new continuations of their original runs. That’s going to be the move forward for the channel overall as their motives have shifted.
Speaking with Collider during Annecy International Animation Film Festival 2026 (where both Cartoon Network and Adult Swim announced huge projects), Cartoon Network president Michael Ouweleen opened up about the possibilities of more revivals and reboots in the future. As explained, the fans are angling for more continuations or even brand new projects instead of reboots of these classic shows and franchises, “We have signals from the fan base, a research study we did in the last year, and they don’t want us to do reboots.”
When asked about whether to reboot a classic Cartoon Network show like seen with The Powerpuff Girls in 2016, or continue it like with Regular Show: The Lost Tapes, Ouweleen noted how it’s up to Cartoon Network Studios and whether or not the original creators are involved in some way, “They’re working with the series creators who have worked on, say, Adventure Time and Regular Show…So, if someone who has worked on one of those properties has a pitch, then they’ll listen to it, and they’ll come talk to me about it…” But Ouweleen is hoping to start fresh.
Because while modern audiences have been accustomed to reboots, Ouweleen is wanting to instead start fresh because audiences have told him that it’s the preferred direction, “In media, generally, people have been into reboots. I’m manifesting the conditions to start new things again…We have signals from the fan base, a research study we did in the last year, and they don’t want us to do reboots.” As it stands, it seems like this continuation style for its franchises is the way they will approach future classics and their potential returns.
It’s been an odd time for nostalgic projects as Ouweleen is absolutely correct. Reboots aren’t well received, and some of the biggest successes of the last few years have been continuations from older projects instead. Regular Show, The Amazing World of Gumball, Adventure Time have all returned with fun new continuations featuring the original creators, and there are others now in various stages of development for shows like Steven Universe and more on the way to catch the wave next.
The Powerpuff Girls is likely the most notorious example of a Cartoon Network reboot project failing, and it seems that Ouweleen and the other execs have learned from this mistake. They are now pitching a new feature film for the franchise, and with a TV reboot also in the works with original creator Craig McCracken also in development at this time, it seems they are ready to bounce back from that reboot from ten years ago at last. But also it does just reveal that it’s best to leave these ideas in the hands of those who created them lest we end up with even more notable mistakes in the future.
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HT – Collider
