Netflix entered into an overall agreement with Gregg and Evan Spiridellis to acquire the StoryBots property.
Through the deal, Netflix will significantly expand the universe of the animated preschool series, building on the characters. The acquisition also backs up Netflix’s commitment to bring educational content to its library of kids content, which now totals more than 72 shows. According to the streaming provider, 60 percent of its audiences are tuning into kids and family content.
Ask The StoryBots is a Netflix original animated series that has continued to find new families to entertain and educate, with an audience that has grown significantly year over year since it first started streaming in 2016—among the first kids originals for Netflix. Through a combination of 3-D, 2-D, claymation, stop-motion, and live-action animation, the series takes kids on a fun learning journey. By engaging guest stars such as Snoop Dogg, Edward Norton, Whoopi Goldberg, and Wanda Sykes, Ask The StoryBots seeks to answers questions like, “Why is the sky blue?” and “How does night happen?”
“Ask The StoryBots has a proven track record of synthesizing complex subjects into bite-sized lessons that are funny and entertaining for young kids and satisfying for parents,” said Vice-President of Original Animation Melissa Cobb. “We are thrilled to welcome Gregg and Evan into the Netflix family and look forward to building out the wonderful and whimsical StoryBots world, finding new ways to delight our growing member base of families around the world.”
“Together with Netflix, our goal is to make StoryBots the leading educational entertainment brand for connected kids and families globally,” said StoryBots co-founders. “We want kids from Argentina to Zambia growing up laughing and learning with StoryBots that feel native to their culture. We see this as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to bring something epically good into the world.”
Season three of Ask The StoryBots launches on Netflix this fall. Together, Netflix and the Spiridellis brothers will produce more StoryBots original programming, such as series and short-form specials, while also expanding the brand into new areas. They will engage creative teams, subject matter experts, and educational consultants to help ensure that the educational content they are producing for StoryBots is relevant around the world.
The company has additional upcoming titles in the works that have yet to be announced.