Apple TV+ gives Fraggle Rock a full series

After experiencing success with a handful of made-in-isolation shorts, the streamer is teaming with Henson and New Regency to bring back the '80s classic.
May 27, 2020

Apple TV+ has partnered with the Jim Henson Company to reboot the live-action puppet series Fraggle Rock with a full series, following the launch of the new short-form episodes Fraggle Rock: Rock On!

The Jim Henson Company will produce the new original comedy series, in association with LA-based prodco New Regency (Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Road Chip, Bohemian Rhapsody), which reunites the original muppet characters in song-filled adventures. No expected delivery date or details on the show’s length have been announced.

Henson CEO and president Lisa Henson will executive produce the new slapstick comedy series alongside Halle Stanford, the prodco’s president of television. Other exec producers on the series include, New Regency’s Yariv Milchan and Michael Schaefer, as well as frequent Henson collaborator John Tartaglia (Splash and Bubbles, Johnny and the Sprites). Showrunners Matt Fusfeld and Alex Cuthbertson (New Girl, Community) are attached to executive produce and write, while Rita Peruggi (The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance, Yo Gabba Gabba!) will produce.

Apple TV+ first brought back the ’80s series (pictured) last month when it launched the remotely-filmed Fraggle Rock: Rock On!, which saw the characters isolating themselves in different parts of the Fraggle Rock caves where they live, and finding ways to have fun via video calls. Executive produced by Stanford and Tartaglia, the short three-to-five minute episodes were shot entirely on iPhone 11s from the homes of the production team and individual artists across the US. The short-form series garnered “overwhelming global fandom,” according to Apple TV+ in a statement, although the new streamer did not respond to a request for a comment on the show’s specific numbers.

The new series joins Apple TV+’s nascent kids offerings, which includes the UK’s Studio AKA’s Here We Are: Notes for Living on Planet Earth. The 36-minute animated special is based on Oliver Jeffers’ picture book, which tries to explain Earth to aliens. Apple TV+ has also picked up Sesame Workshop’s Ghostwriters and Helpsters and WildBrain’s Snoopy in Space.

Despite not having a lot of kids content, its slate did help the streamer make a splash at the Daytime Emmy Nominations last week. Apple TV+ received 17 nominations for its children’s programming, including eight for Sinking Ship Entertainment and Sesame Workshop’s Ghostwriter (a reboot of a ’90s show) and five for Sesame Workshop’s Helpsters.

 

About The Author
News editor for Kidscreen. Ryan covers tech, talent and general kids entertainment news, with a passion for kids rap content and video games. Have a story that's of interest to Kidscreen readers? Contact Ryan at rtuchow@brunico.com

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