Netflix, Hulu land two of the biggest creators in animation
Among streaming services, the animation wars continue to intensify.
When it comes to top under-40 talents, Hulu and Netflix have just signed two of the hottest creators in cartoons.
Alex Hirsch, the 33-year-old creator of Disney XD’s Emmy-winning series “Gravity Falls,” has signed a multiyear deal with Netflix, the trades report.
Landing Hirsch is a big get for Netflix, which gains the animator’s exclusive services to develop series and features.
“Gravity Falls,” the scifi/apocalyptic series centered on tween twins, ran from 2012 to 2016. Hirsch followed that up by contributing to the screenwriting of “Detective Pikachu,” the Nintendogame-based film due out next year.
When the Annie Awardwinning “Gravity Falls” wrapped in February 2016, the series finale averaged 2.9 million viewers — the most-watched Disney XD telecast at the time. And an all-day “takeover event” tied to the finale drew 10.7 million unique total viewers.
Hirsch lands at the home of such animated series as the zeitgeist-riding “BoJack Horseman” and Matt Groening’s new “Disenchantment.”
Meanwhile, Justin Roiland, the 38-yearold co-creator of Adult Swim’s huge sci-fi hit “Rick and Morty,” has signed on for a new series at Hulu, according to Deadline.
Hulu landed Roiland and “Rick and Morty” executive producer Mike McMahan for a two-season, 16-episode order of “Solar Opposites,” an aliens-in-Middle-America story from Twentieth Century Fox.
Last May, Adult Swim signed “Rick and Morty” to a new eye-popping 70-episode order. And for good reason: Last year, the smart, warped series was the No. 1 TV show among millennials.
Hulu is looking to add fresh animated content to its extensive library of existing hits, including “Rick and Morty,” “South Park” and “Bob’s Burgers.”
As a bonus, the two streaming services gain, in Roiland and Hirsch, two of the more versatile voice actors working today.