Max seeks comedy & “cool shit” in adult animation as ‘Velma’ renewed

Velma

Warner Bros. Discovery is looking for comedy and “just some really cool shit” when it comes to adult animation for its Max streaming platform.

Speaking at the Annecy International Animated Film Festival, Suzanna Makkos, EVP of original comedy and adult animation, for Max and Adult Swim, laid out the “simple values” that Max is looking for in its original animation brand.

“First, comedy with heart and edge; diverse, inclusive shows that have a thematic resonance underneath them; and something that I feel like it’s overlooked, not in this crowd, but sometimes in general, is character design – it needs to be original, it should show the hand of the artists and shouldn’t feel watered down and generic.”

Makkos highlighted the Mindy Kaling-led series Velma as among the recently launched shows that fit these values and revealed that the series has been renewed for a second season.

She explained that Velma, which is focused around the character Velma Dinkley from the long-running kids franchise Scooby-Doo, came about as WBD is seeking to mine its legacy IP for characters that can fit its animation strategy.

“When Mindy and her team expressed interest in the title, we knew this was the perfect fit for Max. It has all the elements we’re looking for; it takes a character who’s never really in the spotlight, shines the light on what makes her special and unique, and the smartest person in the room.”

Makkos said that she is “focusing primarily on comedy going forward,” but added “I do have a few action things in the works.”

She highlighted the upcoming, previously announced adult animated sci-fi drama Scavengers Reign as one such action show, which she said fit into the category of “just some really cool shit” that she wants to bring to Max. The series follows the shipwrecked crew of a damaged deep space salvage craft trying to survive on a beautiful yet very unforgiving planet.

During the presentation at Annecy, Makkos also shared first look footage at upcoming shows Young Love and Adventure Time: Fionna And Cake, as well as updates on series in development such as Anything Factory, Uptown Bodega and Keeping Up With the Joneses.