The new agreement includes the famed moose and squirrel, ‘George of the Jungle,’ ‘Dudley Do-Right,’ and other Ward properties, with brand new IP-based content to follow.
“Everything old is new again,” says Eric Ellenbogen, CEO of kids’ and family entertainment content company WildBrain. He’s referring to a newly signed agreement with Jay Ward Productions, Inc. across distribution, production, and licensing for the entire portfolio of classic Ward-owned IP that includes such classic cartoons as George of the Jungle, Mr. Peabody & Sherman, Dudley Do-Right, Rocky & Bullwinkle, and Super Chicken.
Under the agreement, WildBrain will add 788 episodes of Jay Ward Productions’ animation titles to its distribution library, and the two companies will create brand new content based on Ward’s library IP.
The partnership reunites Ellenbogen, with Tiffany Ward, President of Jay Ward Productions and daughter of the late animation producing giant Jay Ward. Ellenbogen and Ward created Bullwinkle Studios through Ellenbogen’s former company, Classic Media, some 20 years ago, before it sold to DreamWorks in 2012 and subsequently became part of NBCUniversal.
“I’m delighted to be reunited with Tiffany to bring new audiences the hilarious characters and shows created by her father, which are part of the canon of the world’s greatest animation,” Ellenbogen said in a statement. “Never has there been a better time to refresh classic branded IP like this, just as we are doing with so many of our evergreen WildBrain brands.”
“I’m thrilled to be teaming up with Eric again,” adds Ward. “Our past partnership with Bullwinkle Studios was prolific and successful, and now that Eric is at the helm of a creative powerhouse like WildBrain, I’m excited to work with him and his fantastic team to broaden the legacy of my father’s work to new generations of kids and families.”
When they last worked together, Ellenbogen and Ward made DreamWorks’ 2014 animated feature, Mr. Peabody & Sherman. They also produced two new series animated by WildBrain (then called DHX Media), including 52 episodes of the Emmy-nominated The Mr. Peabody & Sherman Show, commissioned by Netflix from DreamWorks, and 26 episodes of the Emmy-nominated The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle, commissioned by Amazon Studios from DreamWorks. Fifty-two episodes of George of the Jungle were also produced by Bullwinkle Studios, and another 52 episodes were later produced by August Media.
Source: WildBrain
Max Weinstein is a writer and editor based in Los Angeles. He is the Editor-at-Large of 'Dread Central' and former Editorial Director of 'MovieMaker.' His work has been featured in 'Cineaste,' 'Fangoria,' 'Playboy,' 'Vice,' and 'The Week.'
