Annecy Festival audiences were treated to a special sneak peek at the upcoming adult animation slate from Max. Suzanna Makko, exec VP of original comedy and adult animation at the streamer, unveiled the second season trailer for Ten Year Old Tom and shared a first-look image from Max’s much-anticipated new series Young Love during her session.
“The series that we create at Max are art and voice driven, with character and comedy coming before anything else,” said Makkos. “We’re always looking for hard comedy with heart and edge, diverse and inclusive shows with underlying thematic resonance, and character design that showcases the hand of the artist. I am so excited to share these incredible series with the world, and continue to show why Max is a great home for adult animation.”
The Max session also offered information on the upcoming development slate at the streamer, which includes Anything Factory, Uptown Bodega and Keeping Up with the Joneses. In addition, Makkos noted that Harley Quinn will return for its fourth season this summer. Fans will be able to catch new seasons of Velma, Clone High (with season two currently in production for a 2024 debut), Fired on Mars, and can look forward to Adventure Time: Fionna & Cake, Scavengers Reign and DC’s Harley Quinn spinoff Kite Man: Hell Yeah! (formerly known as Noonan’s), as well as as James Gunn and Peter Safran’s Creature Commandos.
Upcoming Max Original series highlights include:
Ten Year Old Tom (Debuts June 29): This series follows the misadventures of an average kid as he contends with questionable guidance from the well-meaning grownups around him. Being a kid is hard enough for Tom, but when bad influences seem to lurk around every corner – from litigious parents and drug dealing bus drivers to school administrators who want to sleep with his mom – it’s downright impossible. While the adults in Tom’s life certainly mean well, they just can’t manage to lead by example. Voices include Steve Dildarian, Jennifer Coolidge, John Malkovich, Gillian Jacobs, Edi Patterson, Byron Bowers, and more, with David Duchovny returning as a guest star along with many others.
Executive Producers: Steve Dildarian (The Life and Times of Tim), Marty Adelstein (One Piece), and Becky Clements (Physical for Tomorrow Studios, and Nick Weidenfeld for Work Friends. Studio/Prod Co: Work Friends – a JV between Nick Weidenfeld (The Boondocks, Rick & Morty) and Tomorrow Studios. The animation is produced at ShadowMachine. ITV Studios handles international distribution.
Young Love (Debuts this Fall): Young Love expands on the animated short Hair Love, which centered around the relationship between an African American father, his daughter Zuri, and the most daunting task a father could ever come across — doing his daughter’s hair for the first time. Filled with comedy and heart, the all-new Max Original animated series Young Love is an honest look into the world of the Young family — including millennial parents Stephen and Angela, their daughter Zuri and her pet cat Rocky – as they juggle their careers, marriage, parenthood, social issues and multi-generational dynamics, all while striving to make a better life for themselves.
Voices include Scott “Kid Cudi” Mescudi, Issa Rae, Loretta Devine, Harry Lennix, Tamar Braxton and Brooke Monroe Conaway. Creator and Executive Producer: Matthew A. Cherry. Executive Producer: Monica Young for Blue Key Entertainment. Executive Producers: Karen Toliver and Carl Jones.Executive Producers: Carl Reed and David Steward II for Lion Forge Animation. Studio/Prod Co: Produced in partnership with Sony Pictures Animation.
Adventure Time: Fionna and Cake
This new half-hour young adult animated series starring the fearless sword-wielding adventurer, Fionna, and her magical best friend and talking cat, Cake. Produced by Cartoon Network Studios, the ten-episode series will explore their relationship and the mysterious land of Ooo. Fionna and Cake – with the help of the former Ice King, Simon Petrikov – embark on a multiverse-hopping adventure and journey of self-discovery. All the while a powerful new antagonist determined to track them down and erase them from existence, lurks in the shadows. Executive Producer: Adam Muto. Studio/Prod Co: Cartoon Network Studios.
Max Originals in development include:
Keeping Up with the Joneses. The Newberry’s struggle to hold onto their past glory while living in the shadow of Jerry Jones and their other rich neighbors in the wealthy Dallas suburb of Highland Park. Writers/Executive Producers: Hugh Davidson, Rachel Ramras, Larry Dorf. Studio/Prod Co: Warner Bros. Animation
Anything Factory. From Tom Kauffman (Rick and Morty) Anything Factory follows Henry Zingo as he returns home to reconnect with his ailing father and help his sister manage the family business: A Wonka-esque factory riddled with ethics violations. Created by: Tom Kauffman and David Seger & Spencer Strauss. Executive Producer: Tom Kauffman.Executive Producer: Searchlight TV
Uptown Bodega. Tati Cruz has inherited her father’s old Bodega and vows to keep the business booming in a fast changing Nueva York with the help of her husband, three kids, and Rocky the bodega cat. Writers/Executive Producers: Oz Rodriguez & Lemon Anderson. Executive Producer: Peter Murrieta. Executive Producer: Greg Walter (3 Arts Entertainment). Studio: Universal Television, a division of Universal Studio Group.
