Earlier this year, Adult Swim fans had the unfortunate task of saying goodbye to the Smiling Friends, as the animated show’s creators confirmed that the third season would be the show’s last. Luckily, the minds responsible for the likes of Pim, Charlie, Alan, and Mr. Boss aren’t throwing in the towel completely when it comes to the entertainment world. In a new report, co-creator Michael Cusack has confirmed that he is working as a showrunner on a brand new Netflix animated series. While an early look doesn’t reveal everything about this Netflix adventure, it looks quite different from the Adult Swim series that became a major franchise for Cartoon Network.
The upcoming Netflix series from Cusack has been confirmed to be titled “Dad’s House,” which will focus on Sean, a thirteen-year-old protagonist who spends every other weekend with his divorced father, Ian. While the two attempt to strengthen their relationship with one another, Ian will seemingly have a difficult time making his dreams a reality. While a trailer and release date haven’t been revealed, The Hollywood Reporter did share a new image from the upcoming Netflix project, which has a similar style to another of Michael Cusack’s series. Before launching Smiling Friends, Cusack worked on Adult Swim’s YOLO and Dad’s House appears to have an animation style similar to the now-defunct animated series. You can check out the first look below.
In confirming the new Netflix series, Cusack once again revisited his beloved Adult Swim series while discussing the decision that both he and co-creator Zach Hadel made in ending the show. “To be perfectly honest, after we finished season three, Zach and I just both had the same feeling where we felt pretty burnt out after putting years and years into this, but also pretty accomplished. We just came to this feeling where we’re like, ‘I think that could just be it after season three.’ We both felt like it was right.”
Many of the Smiling Friends’ episodes were only tangentially related to one another, but the series finale worked in quite a few different elements from the previous three seasons. While the Adult Swim series was initially confirmed for five seasons, Cusack and Hadel pulled the plug early, though you might not know it from how season three ended things in such a grand fashion. Luckily, the co-creators have stated in the past that they haven’t fully closed the door on returning to this universe, though they will need a good reason/story to revisit their Adult Swim series.
While Zach Hadel hasn’t confirmed whether he is working on a new series of his own, he has plenty of experience in the animation world outside of Smiling Friends. Specifically, the creator has been a part of SpongeBob SquarePants, Helluva Boss, and Big City Greens, proving that he has some serious versatility in the realm of animation.
What do you think? Leave a comment below and join the conversation now in the ComicBook Forum!
