The creators of Hulu’s Koala Man explain the show’s unique twist

Although certified “adult animation” has thrived, few series launched through streaming services in recent years have achieved the balance between comedy and established family sentiment. early Simpsons And bob burger As class S. But koala man You may become one of them.

Created by Michael Cusack (Smiling friends), the new Hulu series centers on Kevin (Cusack), an uptight middle-aged father of two who struggles at his humble job working for Crocodile Hunter-esque Big Greg (Hugh Jackman) while masquerading as the powerless crime-fighter the Koala Man at night. To set up the show, which oscillates between home life with Kevin and his wife, Vicki (Sarah Snook), and the more incidental and fantastical exploits of Koala Man, Cusack teamed up with Justin Roiland (Rick and Morty(and showrunners Dan Hernandez and Benji Summit)Detective Pikachu).

“In this day and age, it’s hard to launch any kind of show because there are so many shows,” Summitt told Polygon. So we knew from the start that we needed something to set the show apart from everything else out there. We’ve got a few things going for us: Michael Cusack’s distinctive voice and point of view; making it more Australian than most things you see on American TV; and trying to inject a little more optimism into it. And the heart in the show is from what I think you see in a lot of adult animation these days. There’s not a lot of irony in it koala man. “

A content creator can easily gauge the size of the adult animation scene, calculate trends, and then determine exactly what the market might be looking for. If viewers can’t distinguish between chicago party aunt And PD HeavenThey can watch both. But Hernandez says, while in the hot seat for a show like Comedy koala manis pretty much impossible to “read tea leaves for what people might want” and actually be funny.

So I think for us, one of the things that we also decided early on was: Let’s make the show that we think is the best show possible. And let’s free ourselves from the outcome and really focus on who we are as a group, we as showrunners, we think is funny, and what’s It makes us laugh, what’s special about this show and we don’t shy away from some of the weirder stuff.”

For Samit and Hernandez, that included one episode involving a “giant alien sex addict,” a workhorse inspired by Cowboy Bebopand an episode-long homage to the 1971 film Manhunt vanishing point, in which Kevin must traverse the Outback to return his son’s jacket. And because the team didn’t have to “make it less Australian, or flatten some of the crazier things,” says Hernandez, there’s clearly a Mad Max moment too, the ultimate franchise from below.

Photo: Hulu

But as Samit stresses, clinging to the emotional core of koala man The final evolution was in a familiar formula – and her writing partners came from a slightly different place than most of their contemporaries. While the two started out in more comedies as adults 1600 penceAnd Samit and Hernandez have spent the past few years in the trenches on G and PG-like fare Detective PikachuAnd Addams family 2, and the upcoming Disney movie based on EPCOT mascot Figment. Project group culminates in koala man.

“When you’re a staff writer on something like our first show, 1600 pence, a lot of what you do is learn how to mimic the model’s style and capture the voice of what your boss is looking for. So you spend a lot of time writing what you wouldn’t write in a vacuum; I will write in the style of Bill Pullman, Jenna Elfman, or Josh Gad. When we wrote The Addams Family, it wasn’t that different – you kind of know what it’s Wednesday. And that’s a really invaluable lesson because sometimes when you’re the presenter on a show, someone might pitch something that’s actually the funniest thing you’ve ever heard, but it sells the character a lot. And the joke might be really funny, but you might have to say, “Based on what kind of person Kevin is, I don’t think he’d say this.”

“So the jobs may seem disparate, but for us, it’s always about the big characters, the big worlds, and how to keep the structural integrity of those things intact while telling stories now.”

If this sounds too honest, please consider the following: koala man Season 1 has a giant alien sex addict.

all episodes koala man Season 1 is streaming now on Hulu.