Thursday, February 10, 2022
Futurama to Return with New Episodes After 10 Years; Adult Swim Renews Birdgirl and Smiling Friends
![Futurama](https://www.sitcomsonline.com/photos/futuramahulu.jpg)
The future is looking bright for Fry, Leela and Bender at Hulu. 20th Television Animation and Hulu announced the return of Matt Groening and David X. Cohen's brilliantly subversive animated sci-fi comedy, Futurama. The order is for 20 new episodes and the series will go into production in February, with a 2023 premiere. The show's returning voice cast includes stars Billy West, Katey Sagal, Tress MacNeille, Maurice LaMarche, Lauren Tom, Phil LaMarr and David Herman.
First airing on Fox from 1999-2003, Futurama was brought back in 2007 with four direct-to-DVD movies that subsequently aired as 30-minute episodes on Comedy Central. Based on their success, Comedy Central ordered new seasons of the series which made a triumphant return to television in June 2010. Futurama is only the second series in the history of the medium to go back into production based on the strength of its DVD sales and repeat airings on cable. Over the course of its storied run, Futurama earned six Emmy(R) Awards--including two Outstanding Animated Program, seven Annie Awards, two Environmental Media Awards and two Writer's Guild of America Awards. Over its seven seasons spanning two decades, 140 original episodes were produced, with the then-final episode airing on September 4, 2013. Futurama focuses on the life of Philip Fry (Billy West), a 25-year-old pizza delivery boy who accidentally freezes himself on December 31, 1999 and wakes up 1,000 years later with a fresh start at life and a "diverse" new group of friends including Leela (Katey Sagal), a tough but lovely one-eyed alien and Bender, a robot who possesses human characteristics and flaws.
Sticking with more animated comedy news, Adult Swim, the #1 destination for young adults, announced season renewals for two of its hit animated comedy series Birdgirl and Smiling Friends. The second season of Birdgirl is set to premiere this summer, while the return of Smiling Friends will be announced at a later date. Fans can now stream both series on the Adult Swim hub on HBO Max.
In season two of Birdgirl, the Birdteam is back and still not learning from their mistakes. Judy Ken Sebben and the Birdteam attempt to navigate the troubles of modern corporations, tackling everything from ethics in new tech, to cancel culture and rejuvenating skin sack health fads. Will they fail? Spectacularly! But sometimes it's not about the solutions we come up with, it's about the new problems we make along the way. Birdgirl is a half-hour animated comedy series starring Paget Brewster (Criminal Minds, How I Met Your Father) and executive produced by Erik Richter (Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law) and Christina Miller. The animation studio is Global Mechanic and it is produced by Adult Swim's Williams Street Productions.
Smiling Friends first premiered on Adult Swim on January 9, when fans were treated to a full run of the entire season that night. The premiere was #1 amongst all ad-supported cable with T12-17, P18-24/34, and W18-24/34 during its 12a-1:45a time period. The block, excluding sports, also won among M18-34/49 and M25-54. As new episodes continued to air during its regular timeslot over four weeks it saw double and triple-digit improvements in audience delivery of the prior four weeks' average. Smiling Friends follows the employees of a small company dedicated to bringing happiness to a bizarre yet colorful world. The quarter-hour animated series is co-created by Michael Cusack (YOLO: Crystal Fantasy) and Zach Hadel (Hellbenders) and animated by Princess Bento Studio.
Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows
Friday, July 26
The Conners - "Keep on Truckin'" (The CW, 8:00PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
After a sudden turn of events, the Conners are forced to face the daily struggles of life in Lanford in a way they never have before.
The Conners - "Tangled Up in Blue" (The CW, 8:30PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Darlene gets one surprise after another when David introduces his girlfriend at a parent-teacher conference and mentions that Mark & Harris will be spending the weekend with them.
Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of July 22)
Friday, July 26
- Nick Jonas (Jonas) - Watch Nick on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
- Michael Douglas (The Kominsky Method) - Michael appears on a repeat of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert at 11:35pm on CBS.
- Sasheer Zamata (Home Economics/Woke/Robbie), Joe Lo Truglio (Brooklyn Nine-Nine/Burning Love/Reno 911!) and Aparna Nancherla (Corporate) - Sasheer, Joe and Aparna are guests on a repeat of After Midnight at 12:37am on CBS.
- Jennie Garth (Mystery Girls/What I Like About You) - Jennie chats with the ladies of The View on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT. NBC's Today catches up with Jennie in the 10am hour.
- Marcus Scribner (grown-ish/black-ish) - Marcus talks about his coming-of-age film How I Learned to Fly on a repeat of Sherri, so check your local listings.
- Delroy Lindo (UnPrisoned) - Delroy talks about UnPrisoned on ABC's GMA 3: What You Need to Know at 1pm.
- Dylan Sprouse (The Suite Life on Deck/The Suite Life of Zack & Cody/Grace Under Fire) - Dylan talks about Lionsgate's The Duel on Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.
New on DVD/Blu-ray
02/13 - Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C. - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
02/27 - The Really Loud House - Season One
03/12 - Ghosts (UK) - The Complete Series
03/12 - Looney Tunes Collector's Choice - Volume 3 (Blu-ray)
03/12 - Rick and Morty - Season 7 (Blu-ray Steelbook) (Blu-ray) (DVD)
04/03 - Too Close for Comfort - The Complete Series (VEI)
04/08 - Check It Out! - The Complete Series (VEI)
05/21 - Frasier (2023) - Season One
06/11 - The Jeffersons - The Complete Series (2024 Release)
06/11 - Welcome Back, Kotter - The Complete Series (2024 Release)
07/05 - Letterkenny - Season 12 (Final Season)
07/30 - Ted Lasso - The Richmond Way (The Complete Series) (Blu-ray) (DVD)
09/17 - Bewitched - The Complete Series - 60th Anniversary Special Edition (Blu-ray)
09/24 - Friends - The Complete Series (4K Ultra HD)
09/24 - Young Sheldon - The Complete Seventh Season / The Complete Series
10/08 - Curb Your Enthusiasm - The Complete Twelfth Season / The Complete Series
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