BURBANK, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nickelodeon today announced the greenlight of Bossy Bear, a brand-new animated preschool series from husband and wife team David Horvath and Sun-Min Kim (UglyDolls) and based on the popular book series by Horvath. The series (30 episodes) follows the misadventures of Bossy Bear, an overly-enthusiastic extrovert, and Turtle, a thoughtful introvert--unlikely besties who make the perfect team for navigating silly childhood adventures in their Koreatown-inspired city of Pleasantburg. Paramount Consumer Products will lead consumer products licensing for the Bossy Bear property worldwide in partnership with Imagine Kids+Family. Bossy Bear is slated for a 2023 premiere on Nickelodeon in the U.S. and Nick Jr. channels internationally. The news was announced today by Brian Robbins, President & Chief Executive Officer, Paramount Pictures & Nickelodeon, and Chief Content Officer, Movies and Kids & Family, Paramount+, at Nickelodeon’s annual upfront presentation held at New York City’s Palladium Times Square.
“Bossy Bear is incredibly funny with a confidence and passion for life that knows no bounds,” said Ramsey Naito, President, Paramount Animation and Nickelodeon Animation. “Everyone on the preschool animation team, led by Eryk Casemiro, is looking forward to collaborating with our creative partners at Imagine Kids+Family to bring these relatable characters and authentic stories of family, friendship, and community to our audience.”
Said Stephanie Sperber, President, Imagine Kids+Family: “I’ve known David and Sun-Min for years and have been a huge fan of their unique and fresh graphic content. Bossy Bear was the first IP we optioned when we started Imagine Kids+Family a few years ago and we couldn’t be more excited to partner with Nickelodeon in bringing these funny and vibrant characters to kids around the world.”
The voice cast for Bossy Bear features: Jayden Ham (Sea of Lights, Star Wars: Jedi Temple Challenge) as Bossy, an extroverted bear whose big imagination and endless enthusiasm lands him in hilarious situations; Jaba Keh (Sesame Street) as Turtle, Bossy’s patient, pure-hearted and empathetic best friend; Claudia Choi (Her, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse) as Bossy’s Mom, the funny and athletic mother who has eyes in the back of her head and Gran-Gran, Turtle’s wise, loving grandmother who knows how to have a good time; and Shaun Baer (Chicago PD) as Bossy’s Dad, the store manager of an electronics shop who has a PhD in Dad jokes. Additional talent will be announced at a later date.
David Horvath and Sun-Min Kim are the creative minds behind the UglyDolls and Tea Time Cats franchises. Horvath also penned the Bossy Bear book series (Hyperion), inspired by a blend of Korean and U.S. pop culture.
Bossy Bear is executive produced by: Imagine Kids+Family president Stephanie Sperber and Elly Kramer; David Horvath and Sun-Min Kim; Bob Mittenthal (It’s Pony, The Loud House) for Nickelodeon Animation; and Ashley Postlewaite (Tom and Jerry in New York, The Mr. Men Show) for Renegade Animation. Jeff D’Elia (Captain Underpants, Doug Unplugs, Rugrats) serves as story editor and Chil Kong is consulting producer.
Bossy Bear marks Nickelodeon’s third project with Imagine Kids+Family, following live-action adventure series The Astronauts and the previously announced preschool series The Tiny Chef Show, which is currently in production and set to premiere later this year. Production of Bossy Bear for Nickelodeon Animation Studio is overseen by Eryk Casemiro, Executive Vice President, Nickelodeon Animation, Global Series Content. Max Goodman serves as Nickelodeon’s Executive in Charge of Production for the series.
About Imagine Kids+Family
Imagine Kids+Family was formed in 2019 by Imagine Entertainment Chairmen Brian Grazer and Ron Howard with a focus on developing and producing premium kids and family entertainment with capabilities in consumer products and franchise building. Imagine Kids+Family is run by President Stephanie Sperber, a veteran kids entertainment executive with a successful career in building kids and family businesses, IP, and franchises. IKF is currently producing The Tiny Chef for Nickelodeon and acquired an equity stake in the popular The Tiny Chef Show to develop the original short-form stop-motion animation Tiny Chef character across all platforms including short-form, tv series, and digital, as part of a strategic global franchise plan which also includes consumer products. Previous productions included the live-action series The Astronauts, also for Nickelodeon. IKF has a partnership with James Patterson’s’ kid imprint Jimmy Books and a first-look partnership with Academy Award-winning animation company Lion Forge (Hair Love) around its existing IP of both licensed and original ideas.
About Paramount Consumer Products
Paramount Consumer Products oversees all licensing and merchandising for Paramount (Nasdaq: PARA, PARAA), a leading global media and entertainment company that creates premium content and experiences for audiences worldwide. Driven by iconic consumer brands, Paramount Consumer Products’ portfolio includes a diverse slate of brands and content from BET, CBS (including CBS Television Studios and CBS Television Distribution), Comedy Central, MTV, Nickelodeon, Paramount Pictures and Showtime. With properties spanning animation, live-action, preschool, youth and adult, Paramount Consumer Products is committed to creating the highest quality product for some of the world’s most beloved, iconic franchises. Additionally, Paramount Consumer Products oversees the online direct-to-consumer business for CBS and Showtime programming merchandise, as well as standalone branded ecommerce websites for Star Trek, SpongeBob, South Park, and MTV.
About Nickelodeon
Nickelodeon, now in its 42nd year, is the number-one entertainment brand for kids. It has built a diverse, global business by putting kids first in everything it does. The brand includes television programming and production in the United States and around the world, plus consumer products, digital, location-based experiences, publishing and feature films. For more information or artwork, visit http://www.nickpress.com. Nickelodeon is a part of Paramount’s (Nasdaq: PARA, PARAA) global portfolio of multimedia entertainment brands.
