Nickelodeon is adding New York Yankees star Aaron Judge to its preschool lineup,

The slugger will appear in an episode of Rubble & Crew on August 26. Judge will be the cleanup hitter as the network airs a full month of new episodes of the series, a spinoff from PAW Patrol.

The August 5 episode of Rubble & Crew is a crossover event, featuring characters from PAW Patrol.

Nickelodeon says that families and preschoolers can catch up on Rubble & Crew on Paramount Plus, where all of Season 1 will be available to stream starting September 4.

Paramount Plus is already the streaming home for PAW Patrol, with all 229 episodes available.

Since launching on Nickelodeon on Aug. 12, 2013, Spin Master’s PAW Patrol has consistently ranked as a top-rated preschool series. It is seen in more than 145 territories and has been translated into 30 languages.

The show’s first spinoff, Rubble & Crew, debuted on February 3, 2023 and follows the character Rubble and his pup family as they use their construction vehicles to build and repair whatever the town of Builder Cove needs in high-stakes adventures.   

A Christmas Day lineup of NBA and NFL games highlights a holiday weekend schedule of live TV sports events.  

Christmas Day will feature three NFL games, beginning with CBS and Nickelodeon’s simulcast of the Las Vegas Raiders-Kansas City Chiefs game, followed by Fox’s coverage of the New York Giants-Philadelphia Eagles contest and ABC’s primetime telecast of the Baltimore Ravens-San Francisco 49ers game.

On the basketball court, the NBA has five games scheduled for December 25, including Milwaukee-New York Knicks (ESPN), Golden State-Denver (ABC), Boston-Los Angeles Lakers (ABC), Philadelphia 76’ers-Miami Heat (ESPN), and Dallas-Phoenix (ESPN).

The NFL also has a doubleheader matchup on Saturday featuring the Cincinnati-Pittsburgh (NBC) and Buffalo-Los Angeles Chargers (Peacock) games. On Sunday, Fox and CBS will air regional NFL coverage, while NFL Network will air a primetime AFC conference matchup between the New England Patriots and Denver Broncos. 

College football continues its bowl season Saturday with seven games across ABC and ESPN, while NBC, Peacock, and USA Network will feature six Premier League soccer games. 

Also on Saturday, DAZN will distribute a pay-per-view boxing card featuring former heavyweight champions Anthony Joshua and Deontay Wilder in separate bouts. The afternoon fight card will retail at $39.99.

Things are still looking up in Bikini Bottom as Paramount Global’s Nickelodeon said it has picked up Season 15 of SpongeBob SquarePants.

The animated series, Nick’s most popular global franchise, next year will mark 25 years and 345 episodes since its launch on July 17, 1999. 

Season 15 will have 26 episodes featuring SpongeBob and his pals including Patrick, Sandy, Mr. Krabs and Squidward, as well as his nemesis Plankton in undersea adventures. Storylines include SpongeBob thinking he has developed an allergy to Krabby Patties, Plankton learning self-defense from Sandy and Mr. Krabs stepping into the gym.

New episodes will debut on Nickelodeon. Seasons 1-12 are available on Paramount Plus.

SpongeBob SquarePants’ voice cast members include Tom Kenny (SpongeBob SquarePants), Bill Fagerbakke (Patrick Star), Rodger Bumpass (Squidward), Clancy Brown (Mr. Krabs), Carolyn Lawrence (Sandy Cheeks) and Mr. Lawrence (Plankton).

SpongeBob SquarePants is produced by Nickelodeon in Burbank. 

Marc Ceccarelli and Vincent Waller are executive producers of SpongeBob SquarePants, The Patrick Star Show and Kamp Koral: SpongeBob’s Under Years. Production is overseen by Claudia Spinelli, senior VP, animation for big kids at Nickelodeon, and Kelley Gardner, VP, current series, animation, Nickelodeon.

CBS Sports and Nickelodeon said they will present an alternative telecast for Super Bowl LVIII on Nickelodeon that will feature guest reporters, virtual filters and on-field graphics — including green slime — familiar to viewers of the kids’ network. 

The traditional version of the game will be seen on CBS and Paramount Plus.

CBS and Nickelodeon, both part of Paramount Global, will also slime it up when the Las Vegas Raiders and Kansas City Chiefs play on Christmas Day. 

“This will be a historic Super Bowl in Las Vegas, and we’re thrilled to partner with the NFL to bring the game to the whole family with the first-ever alternate telecast of the Super Bowl,” Paramount president and CEO Bob Bakish said. “In year one of our new long-term deal with the NFL, we continue to maximize our expanded distribution rights and further unlock the value of the League through the demonstrated power of our multiplatform portfolio across CBS, Paramount Plus and Nickelodeon.”

CBS and Nickelodeon, have previously produced Nickelodeon versions of NFL games, including NFL Wild Card Weekend last season. 

“We’re thrilled to partner with CBS Sports and Nickelodeon to present the first alternate telecast of the Super Bowl,” said Hans Schroeder, NFL executive VP of media distribution. “Our previous telecasts on Nickelodeon have been huge hits and created a new and different way to experience an NFL game. We’re excited to bring that creativity to Super Bowl LVIII and give our fans another way to enjoy one of the world’s most popular sporting events.”

Nickelodeon’s Super Bowl telecast will also be distributed internationally in the U.K., Australia and New Zealand on a delayed basis, with further details to be announced soon.

The Nickelodeon Super Bowl telecast and Nickelodeon Nickmas game are produced by CBS Sports in association with Nickelodeon Productions. Sean McManus and Harold Bryant serve as executive producers of The NFL on CBS, and CBS Sports’s Shawn Robbins is coordinating producer of the games. Production for Nickelodeon is overseen by Ashley Kaplan, executive vice president, Nickelodeon & Awesomeness Unscripted & Digital Franchise Studio; Paul J. Medford, VP of unscripted current series; and Luke Wahl, VP of unscripted creative.

Nickelodeon Studios said it greenlit a new original movie based on the long-running series The Thundermans.

The Thundermans Return features the series’ original cast and production is slated to begin in April.

A premiere date was not yet available.

“It’s been such a joy to return to Hiddenville with this iconic superhero family and original cast,” Zack Olin and Shauna Phelan, co-heads of Nickelodeon & Awesomeness Live-Action, said. “This movie is made for the audiences who fell in love with the show’s original run on Nick and also for today’s generation discovering it on streaming.”

The Thundermans premiered on Nickelodeon in 2013 and ran for four seasons. It features a family that tries to keep their superpowers a secret. In the movie, the family is forced to return to Hiddenville — where they lived during the series — when a piece of superhero activity goes awry.

The Thundermans Return stars Kira Kosarin, Jack Griffo, Addison Riecke, Diego Velazquez, May Le Clark, Chris Tallman and Rona Blasi.

The Thundermans Return is written and executive-produced by Jed Spingarn and directed by Trevor Kirschner. Kira Kosarin, Jack Griffo, Dan Cross and David Hoge also serve as executive producers. 

Production of the movie for Nickelodeon Studios is overseen by Olin and Phelan. Brian Banks serves as Nickelodeon’s executive in charge of production. ■

Nickelodeon and Mattel television said they renewed the animated series Monster High for Season 2 with a 20-episode order.

Season 1 of Monster High premiered in the U.S. on Oct. 28, improving its time slot with a 0.58 rating among kids 2 to 11. Across all of the Nickelodeon networks, Monster High was seen by 1 million kids and 4 million total viewers.

A digital Monster High series with 8 episodes is set to make it debut on the official Monster High YouTube Channel on Nov. 18. 

“Monster High is an iconic franchise that continues to connect with fans around the globe because of its creativity, relatable characters, and authenticity,” said Claudia Spinelli, Senior VP, Big Kids Animation. “We can’t wait to continue to work alongside our partners at Mattel to bring even more animated stories to life surrounding the most-famous teen monsters around.”

The series follows teenage monsters–Clawdeen Wolf, Draculaura, Frankie Stein and Deuce Gorgon–as the navigate growing up and the high school experience in a special institution, Monster High.

“Monster High is a franchise that, at its core, encourages fans to live as their true selves and celebrate the things that make them unique,” said Fred Soulie, Senior VP and General Manager at Mattel Television. “We are proud to partner with Nickelodeon and our talented cast members from both the animated and live-action worlds of Monster High to continue delivering this important message through fun, entertaining content.” 

Following Monster High The Movie, Nickelodeon and Mattel Television recently announced they have greenlit a sequel to the live-action movie musical, which debuted on Nickelodeon and Paramount Plus Oct 6. Based on the iconic Mattel franchise about the children of famous monsters and creatures, the feature-length TV movie will begin production in January in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, and will air on Nickelodeon and stream on Paramount Plus  in 2023.

Shea Fontana serves as showrunner and co-executive producer of Monster High, with Nick Filippi as supervising producer. Production is overseen for Nickelodeon by Claudia Spinelli, Senior VP, Big Kids Animation, and Nikki Price, Director of Franchise Animation. Fred Soulie, Senior VP and General Manager of Mattel Television, and Christopher Keenan, Senior VP of Creative, serve as executive producers for Mattel. ■

New York Comic Con is under way at the Jacob Javits Center in New York, happening October 6 to October 9. Television has a growing presence at the show, with exhibits set up for Nickelodeon's Spongebob Square Pants and Monster High, Fox’s Animation Domination, Paramount Plus's Teen Wolf–The Movie, MeTV and a few other networks and shows.

Julie Plec, creator of Vampire Academy on Peacock, was interviewed at the event October 6, and the cast and an executive producer of CBS comedy Ghosts held a panel that day too.

Fans of course dressed up in costumes, ranging from Ghostbusters, to Steve and Robin from Stranger Things in Scoops Ahoy attire, to Star Trek, Super Mario, and a vast range of superheroes.

Attendees were invited to audition to be on MeTV’s Svengoolie, and work alongside the horror host in a campaign the network calls Spawn of Svengoolie. “It’s been constant since we got here,” said a worker of the auditions.

Also there to represent MeTV was Marta Kristen, who played Judy Robinson on Lost in Space.

“We want to take a picture with the robot–and with Marta Kristen,” said Gretchen Jellett of Calverton, New York. Her favorite show on MeTV? Hogan’s Heroes.

She comes every year to Comic Con with her husband. “I married a big kid,” she said. “And he married a big kid.”

Things were a little quieter at the SpongeBob booth. “I don’t like SpongeBob either, to be honest with you,” a father said to his son as they passed.

Fox’s Animation Domination booth featured upcoming Dan Harmon show Krapopolis and the Jon Hamm show Grimsburg, along with old standbys like The Simpsons. Asked about their favorite Fox animated shows, a woman said "Bob’s Burgers" and her partner said, "Family Guy…when it was good."

Michelle Ozone of Brooklyn said she was curious about Krapopolis. “I like Dan Harmon specifically,” she said. “I look forward to the Community movie.”

Julie Plec, who co-created Vampire Diaries, and is working on Vampire Academy for Peacock, sat for a session. “Peacock bought the show even though I hadn’t written a word yet,” she shared. “It was a really hard show to prep and a really hard show to cast.”

The book franchise split time between Montana and the Poconos of Pennsylvania. Plec wanted it all in one setting. She needed a castle to shoot in, and found the perfect one in Spain.

Plec said she was drawn to vampires because all of her favorite shows growing up were “character stories and romance stories and friend stories,” and they all got canceled. Character and romance and friend stories with supernatural elements, on the other hand, seem to last.

“This show is about class and intolerance and friendship…and it’s about vampires too,” she said of the new project.

Down on the Main Stage, the cast and a producer from Ghosts sat for a panel after the audience watched a good chunk of the October 6 episode, "Alberta’s Podcast". Asher Grodman, who plays pantless ghost Trevor, had his seat break underneath him. “It’s because I’m wearing pants, man,” he said.

Exec producer Joe Wiseman explained how the writers room likes to put two characters who haven’t interacted much in a scene together, and see what kind of humor pops up. That happens when Flower and Hetty share some scenes in the October 6 episode.

Utkarsh Ambudkar, who plays Jay, said he hopes Jay will eventually get to see and hear and interact with the ghosts. “Hopefully we have many seasons to explore these storylines,” he said. “But for now I get to treat them like my children–and ignore them.”

Back on the floor, Comic Con veteran Hamex Quispe of Queens showed his friends, and Comic Con first-timers, around the floor. He’s there to take in the animation, consume some “exclusive stuff,” and meet people like him.

His friend Kailey Ortiz of the Bronx had a big smile on her face. “I love superheroes and I love comics and I love anime,” she said. “I love to see it all come together.”

On Friday, October 7, Dan Harmon presents Krapopolis, Prime Video presents Good Omens and the cast of USA/Syfy’s Chucky sits for a panel, among other TV stuff. Saturday has a Smallville cast reunion, a peek at Netflix’s Wednesday and a session for AMC’s The Walking Dead.

Sunday features a screening and Q&A for The CW’s The Winchesters, and the SpongeBob crossover event The Tidal Zone, among other TV happenings, before the Javits clears out. ■

The television industry kicks off October and the Halloween season with several scary series and movie debuts this week, while a DC Comics-themed series returns on a streaming service. 

Showtime will look to thrill audiences with the October 9 premiere of original vampire-themed series Let The Right One In. The series, which stars Demian Bichir, Madison Taylor Baez and Anika Noni Rose, follows a father’s efforts to keep her 12-year old vampire daughter alive by any means necessary. 

Netflix on October 5 will debut the horror film Mr. Harrigan’s Phone. The movie, based on a Stephen King story, stars Donald Sutherland as Mr. Harrigan, a reclusive billionaire who, from the grave, communicates with a young boy who befriends Harrigan and continues to call Harrigan’s phone after the billionaire's death.

HBO Max on October 6 will launch the third season of DC Comics-based series Pennyworth: The Origin of Batman’s Butler. The series, which follows the exploits of Bruce Wayne’s butler prior to him meeting Wayne’s parents, moves to the streaming service after its first two seasons aired on Epix.

Below are video trailers and premiere dates for multiple shows debuting the week of October 3 to October 9 on cable networks and streaming services (for some videos, viewer discretion is advised):

October 4 – Cherish the Day (returning series) – OWN

October 4 – Sherwood (drama) – BritBox

October 5 – Chucky (returning series) – Syfy

Also: TV Scares Up New Original Programming for Halloween

October 5 – Reginald the Vampire (dramedy/horror) – Syfy

October 6 – A Friend of the Family (drama) – Peacock

October 6 – Monster High: The Movie (movie) – Nickelodeon

October 7 – Hellraiser (movie) – Hulu

October 7 – Luckiest Girl Alive (drama) – Netflix

October 7 – The Midnight Club (drama) – Netflix

October 7 – The Redeem Team (documentary) – Netflix

The list of new shows and specials debuting during the last week in July include a reimagining of the murder/mystery series Pretty Little Liars and the return of Kevin Bacon and Aldis Hodge in Showtime’s crime series City on A Hill.

HBO Max’s July 28 Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin takes place 20 years after the events of the original Pretty Little Liars series – which ran on Freeform from 2010-2017. The series stars Bailee Madison, Chandler Kinney, Zaria, Malia Pyles, and Maia Reficco, as well as Mallory Bechtel, Sharon Leal, Elena Goode, Lea Salonga, Eric Johnson, and Alex Aiono.

The July 31 third season premiere of Showtime's City On A Hill will focus on Boston’s high society Beacon Hill neighborhood where former FBI agent Jackie Rohr (Bacon) finds a new job running security for a wealthy family but eventually teams with Assistant District Attorney Decourcy Ward to help fix a broken criminal justice system, said the network.

Below are video trailers and premiere dates for multiple shows debuting the week of July 25-31 on cable networks and streaming services (for some videos, viewer discretion is advised):

July 26 – Love in the Flesh (reality series) – Hulu

July 27 – High School Musical: The Musical: The Series (returning series) – Disney Plus

July 27 – The Most Hated Man on the Internet (reality) – Netflix

July 27 – We Met In Virtual Reality (documentary) – HBO

July 28 – Hell of a Week with Charlamagne Tha God (talk show) – Comedy Central

July 28 – Keep Breathing (drama) – Netflix

July 28 – The Resort (drama) – Peacock

July 28 – Harley Quinn (returning series) – HBO Max

July 29 – Amber Brown (drama) – Apple TV Plus

July 29 – Uncoupled (comedy) – Netflix

July 29 – Not Okay (drama) – Hulu

July 29 – Paper Girls (drama) – Prime Video

July 29 – Surface (drama) – Apple Tv Plus

July 30 – Are You Afraid of the Dark? Ghost Island (drama) – Nickelodeon

San Diego Comic-Con: International on Thursday (July 21) convened in person for the first time since 2019, after going virtual due to the pandemic, with more than 100,000 people expected to attend the four-day event. The convention will showcase some of the most highly anticipated television and film content. 

Along with executive and talent-based panels, television and streaming services such as Disney Plus, HBO Max, AMC, Paramount Plus, Netflix and FX will feature trailers from some of TV's most successful shows.

Below is a sampling of TV show videos presented during Comic-Com and will be updated throughout the convention's four-day run (for some videos, viewer discretion is advised):

Disney Plus’s ‘National Treasure: Edge of History’ 

Disney Channel’s ‘Marvel’s Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur’

Netflix’s ‘He-Man and the Masters of the Universe’

Paramount Plus’s ‘Mike Judge’s Beavis and Butt-Head’

Nickelodeon’s ‘The Tidal Zone’

Disney Plus’s ‘Marvel’s I Am Groot’

AMC's 'Tales of the Walking Dead'

AMC's 'The Walking Dead'

AMC's 'Anne Rice Interview With A Vampire'

Disney Plus's 'She-Hulk' 

Paramount Plus's 'Picard'

Paramount Plus's 'Star Trek: Lower Decks'

Mediacom Communications said Wednesday it has renewed its carriage deal with Paramount Global, including several cable and broadcast networks as well as access to Showtime OTT. Terms were not disclosed.

As part of the deal, Mediacom will continue to make cable channels like BET, CBS Sports Network, CMT, Comedy Central, MTV, Nickelodeon, Paramount Network, Pop TV, Smithsonian Channel, and others available to its customers. In addition, the operator also renewed retransmission-consent rights to CBS owned-and-operated broadcast TV stations in its service territory.

Mediacom is the fifth-largest U.S. cable operator with about 1.5 million cable, telephone and broadband subscribers in 22 states. ▪️

Paramount’s kids’ network Nickelodeon said it ordered 26 episodes of a new animated preschool series, Super Duper Bunny League, based on the comic book by cartoonist Jamie Smart.

The show is expected to premiere in the U.S. in 2024 and roll out on Nick Jr.’s international channels.

The series centers on a diverse group of bunny friends who battle to defend their city and the world from their archnemesis (and creator), the inept Dr. Fuzzleglove.

“Super Duper Bunny League brings to life the colorful world that Jamie created with quirky imaginative characters and engaging stories filled with zany adventures and loads of fun,” said Eryk Casemiro, executive VP, Nickelodeon Animation, Global Series Content. “We are excited for the opportunity to take the comic books to the next level with a preschool animated series that combines big superhero action with silly cartoony comedy in a uniquely Nickelodeon way.”

Super Duper Bunny League is produced by Nickelodeon Animation in Burbank, California. Robert Scull and Jonny Belt are executive producers with Jamie Smart serving as a consultant on the series. Production for Nickelodeon is overseen by Casemiro. Marielle Kaar serves as Nickelodeon’s executive in charge of production for the series. ■

After decades as the head of ad sales for CBS, it‘s hard to picture Jo Ann Ross returning after COVID to Carnegie Hall and pitching streaming.

But since the last live upfronts, CBS has combined with Viacom and become Paramount. And the TV world has shifted to streaming.

Ross touted the power of the combined company during last year’s virtual event.

“This will be a much bigger show being in Carnegie, and we’ll talk about entire platform across all of Paramount,” Ross told Broadcasting+Cable a few days before upfront week. “We have our linear and then obviously the biggest streaming platform in the universe” with the ad-supported version of Paramount Plus and the AVOD platform Pluto TV.

Upfronts 2022: Click Here for More Coverage

Ross said Wednesday afternoon’s presentation was designed to be “entertaining and informative and fun,” adding Paramount will get its “message across in a very innovative and unique way.”

CBS finished the season as the No. 1 broadcast network by some measures, and Paramount’s portfolio of cable networks — including Nickelodeon, MTV, Comedy Central and BET — reach diverse audiences.

“You really cant buy around us, and then you’ve got the strength of what we’re doing with Paramount Plus and Pluto,” she noted. “I don't think that we get enough credit for what we have to deliver and what we have to offer with Paramount Plus and Pluto, I think we've done a really good job in the past year, getting out in front of the marketplace and the way that we're selling Paramount Plus through Eye Q, with genre bundles, making it easier for our clients to buy and activate.”

Also: CBS Reveals Fall Schedule

Paramount has been busy testing measurement companies and their ability to count audiences. It will be offering clients a choice in measurement currency, not just Nielsen. Paramount is ready to employ VideoAmp and Comscore and is close with iSpot.TV. Paramount is also working with OpenAP’s XPm to provide cross-publisher, cross-platform reach and frequency optimization.

Paramount is bringing the market what it calls Super Franchises, allowing advertisers to tap directly into the company’s diverse roster of major franchises, deploying high-impact media and premium access across linear, streaming and social, custom marketing integrations and exclusivity. 

Paramount’s “Content for Change” initiative underscores the company’s position in the DE&I space by applying research and data to transform the creative ecosystem.

It has advanced advertising with Vantage, one of the first sophisticated audience targeting platforms. Vantage delivers relevance and results across all consumer touchpoints, linear, digital and addressable TV. 

Ross is expecting this year’s market to be strong.

“You really cant buy around us. And then you’ve got the strength of what we’re doing with Paramount Plus and Pluto,” she noted. “We’re expecting the demand to be there,” she said. “Obviously there are a lot more choices, but I think we’re positioned really well with the depth and the breadth of our content.” ■

Noggin has launched an interactive game called Bubble Guppies: Dive into The Met, Nickelodeon announced Monday (April 4). The game takes students, ages two through seven on a virtual field trip of the Metropolitan Museum of Art where they can explore and learn about artwork from different cultures and countries.

This is the first release under the new early learning programs which includes Big Hearts, Mighty Minds, Healthy Heroes and Brave Explorers. 

Bubble Guppies: Dive Into The Met follows Mr. Grouper and the Bubble Guppies on a field trip to the Met to study works of art from Japan, Ancient Egypt, The Netherlands, India and France. There are five featured artworks in the game: Children Playing in the Snow Under Plum Trees in Bloom by Hashimoto; The King Travels to His Sons' Weddings by Bahu Masters; A Goldsmith in His Shop by Petrus Christus; Stela of Aafenmut from Ancient Egypt ca. 924-889 BC and Madame Georges Charpentier and Her Children by August Renoir. 

The game also allows students to create their own works inspired by those featured in the Met using paint tools and stickers. ■

Nickelodeon said it has even bigger plans for it iconic franchises – SpongeBob, Paw Patrol, Blue’s Clues, Baby Shark, Loud House – at its upfront presentation Thursday.

The kids network also showed off new titles, including Monster High and Transformers.

In addition to cable, Nickelodeon is a linchpin of parent company Paramount’s streaming efforts, with programming on Paramount Plus and Pluto TV.

“As consumer behaviors and the family dynamic shifted, we went all in on meeting kids on every platform they’re embracing, especially streaming on Paramount Plus, where our considerable library and originals like Kamp Koral: SpongeBob’s Under Years, Star Trek: Prodigy and Big Nate drive significant audiences to the platform,” said Brian Robbins, president and CEO of Paramount Pictures and Nickelodeon, as well as chief content officer, movies and kids & family for Paramount Plus.

“At the same time, we’ve kept a strong focus on linear, where longstanding favorites like Danger Force and new hits like The Patrick Star Show have kept us owning the top shows and the overall kids 2-11 space for nine years and counting.”

Nickelodeon animation has more than 40 projects in active production, including series and movies. Projects include Face’s Music Party, featuring Nick Jr.’s face mascot, Bossy Bear and HexVet. Big Nate, Blaze and the Monster Machines, Middlemost Post and Are You Afraid of the Dark? Have been renewed.

SpongeBob SquarePants is back for a 14th season of 26 episodes. The network also ordered more episodes of spinoffs Kamp Koral and The Patrick Star Show. There will also be three movies from Bikini Bottom on Paramount Plus and a theatrical release is in development.

Signer Cardi B will be joining Baby Shark’s Big Show, lending her voice to a character called Sharki B. The episode will premiere April 15. Sharki B’s song from the episode, The Seaweed Sway, will be featured on Nick Jr.’s compilation album, Sing, Dance & Sway the Nick Jr. Way, which will be available on digital streaming platforms including iTunes, Apple Music, Spotify, Amazon Music, Tidal, and Pandora on April 8.

A Nick music label is in the works.

Nickelodeon is beginning production of a live-action version of The Loud House that will premiere later this year on Paramount Plus. 

Coming off its broadcast of NFL Wild Card Playoff games and its NFL Slimetime, the channel is swinging into golf with the Nickelodeon Slime Cup, with pro golfers teaming up with Nick show stars for a messy competition. ■

Nickelodeon will continue with its expansion of the SpongeBob SquarePants franchise with the second season renewal of series spinoff The Patrick Star Show.

The 26-episode second season of the animated series will continue to follow a young Patrick Star, who hosts a variety show for the neighborhood from his bedroom, the network said. New episodes from season one of the series will continue to debut on Nickelodeon.

The Patrick Star Show features the voices of Bill Fagerbakke, Tom Wilson, Cree Summer, Jill Talley and Dana Snyder. 

The Patrick Show is one of two SpongeBob SquarePants spinoff series, following Kamp Koral: SpongeBob’s Under Year.

Also: Miranda Cosgrove, Rob Gronkowski to Host Nick's 'Kids' Choice Awards'

“This next season of The Patrick Star Show will embark upon even more imaginative, colorful and hilarious adventures, diving deeper into the Star family’s daily life and escapades,” said Claudia Spinelli, Nickelodeon Senior VP of Animation for Big Kids in a statement.  “For over 20 years, the beloved Patrick Star has provided humor to fans around the world, and we can’t wait to see what he does next.”

Marc Ceccarelli and Vincent Waller serve as executive producers of The Patrick Star Show. ■ 

Nickelodeon said that iCarly star Miranda Cosgrove and Super Bowl champion Rob Gronkowski will co-host this year’s Kids’ Choice Awards.

The Kids’ Choice Awards will air live on April 9 from Barker Hangar in Santa Monica, California.

This year’s show will feature people getting slimed 1,000 times and the production will include an on-screen scoreboard keeping track. 

“The Kids’ Choice Awards is such a unique show with tons of energy, superstars and of course, lots of slime. Nickelodeon has always been my family and to co-host this iconic show alongside Gronk will be a blast,” said Cosgrove.

“I’ve always been a kid at heart so co-hosting the slimiest award show of the year will be an extraordinary time for me. I’m looking forward to bringing the fun that I have on and off the field to kids at home,” added Gronkowski, who had his own Nick show Crashletes a few years back.

Sponsors for the awards show include The Lego Group, the Kirby and the Forgotten Land game, Lunchables and Olive Garden.

Nickelodeon said first-time Kids’ Choice Awards nominees include Olivia Rodrigo, Saweetie, Elizabeth Olsen, Awkwafina, The Kid LaROI and Doja Cat. Multiple nominations have gone to Taylor Swift, Adele, Danger Force, High School Musical: The Musical: The Series, iCarly, Cobra Kai, and The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge on the Run. 

Fans can cast votes on the official Kids’ Choice Awards website, KidsChoiceAwards.com, and through the Screens Up app. ■

Below is a snapshot of TV by the numbers for the week of Feb. 21-27, showcasing the most-watched shows and networks using glass-level data from Vizio’s Inscape, and network and show TV ad impressions insights via iSpot.tv.

Most-Watched Shows and Networks 

Via Inscape, Vizio’s TV data product with glass-level insights from a panel of more than 19 million active and opted-in smart TVs. Data is linear, live TV only and includes all episode types (new and reruns). Rankings are by percent share duration (i.e., time spent watching).

With the calendar turning to March, interest in men‘s college basketball is heating up in advance of the NCAA tournament. From February 21-27, games scored 2.12% of total TV minutes watched — No. 1 for the week, and nearly double the watch-time of the next most-watched programming.

Some additional insights about the top programming on TV:

• The National Basketball Association only aired games from Thursday through Sunday, yet still netted 1.14% of minutes watched for the week.
• Fox News Channel coverage surges, with seven of the top 25 most-watched shows, including Fox News Live, which soars from outside the top 50 to No. 15 overall.
• Law & Order: Special Victims Unit leaps from No. 42 to No. 5 week-over-week, with 0.85% of minutes watched.
• Paw Patrol jumps to No. 14 after not appearing in the top 50 the previous week, via marathon viewing on Nickelodeon and Nick Jr.

Fox News hops to No. 1 among networks in terms of total watch-time, courtesy of Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) coverage and commentary around Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine. The network grew week-over-week minutes watched on TV from 5.24% to 7.39%.

More insights around the most-watched networks from Feb. 21-27:

• With audiences locked on Russia and Ukraine news, other cable news networks also show week-over-week increases, with CNN climbing from No. 15 to No. 5 and MSNBC moving from No. 19 to No. 11 by minutes watched.
• In part thanks to Paw Patrol, Nickelodeon moves from No. 20 to No. 17 in week-over-week watch-time.
• HGTV builds up to No. 9 by minutes watched, after sitting at No. 11 the previous week.
• The CW’s watch-time moves from No. 24 to No. 22 in our rankings, boosted by viewers tuning into All-American’s return and the debut of All-American: Homecoming.

Top Shows and Networks by TV Ad Impressions

Via iSpot.tv, the always-on TV ad measurement and attribution company. Rankings are by TV ad impressions, for new episodes only. 

Basketball’s watch-time advantage also corresponds to a TV ad impressions lead from Feb. 21-27. Men’s college hoops accounts for over 4% of impressions to top all programming during the week, while NBA games delivered nearly 2.5%.

More data about the top programs by TV ad impressions during the week:

• The men’s Dubai Tennis Championships, women’s Monterrey Open and player responses to the Russia-Ukraine conflict helped drive Tennis Channel’s Center Court to No. 16 by TV ad impressions on the week.
• American Idol’s season 20 premiere helped float the show to No. 25 by impressions (0.72% of everything served on TV).
• News-focused programs make up the majority of the top programs by impressions from Feb. 21-27, with 14 of the top 25 — and 16 including sports-news programs SportsCenter and Center Court.
• Daytime soap operas claim three spots among the top 25, led by The Young and the Restless at No. 8 (with 1.1% of impressions).

CBS skips to the No. 1 spot in our ad-impressions-by-network ranking from February 21-27, in part due to men’s college basketball triple-headers on both Saturday and Sunday.

Additional insights around the top networks by impressions from the week:

• Cable news claims three of the top seven spots in our rankings, with Fox News grabbing 10.5% of impressions, followed by CNN (8.6%) and MSNBC (4.9%).
• Live sports also delivered a large portion of impressions, as 12 of the top 25 networks aired at least some sort of sporting event during the week.
• Related: ESPN2 impressions climbed by 15% week-over-week as a result of more impressions delivered by men’s college basketball games (despite fewer minutes of advertising).
• Top networks delivered a larger share of impressions, with the top eight networks by impressions accounting for nearly 71% of impressions from Feb. 21-27, versus 65% the previous week.

Paramount Plus is adding to its kids and family programming with new films and series from Nickelodeon series by expanding franchises such as SpongeBob SquarePants, Transformers, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Dora the Explorer. 

The streaming service, which last year revived iCarly, also plans a slate of movies and series aimed at young adults.

The new programming plans were announced at ViacomCBS’s investor event Tuesday.

Also: TCA: Paramount Plus Renews ‘Mayor of Kingstown’ and ‘SEAL Team’, Teases New Programs

Brian Robbins, chief content officer, movies and kids & family for Paramount Plus, said Nickelodeon’s audience has proved brand loyal. Once they sign up, they remain subscribed. Their churn rate is lower by double digits, creating long-term value for the company.

“As we’ve known with Nickelodeon’s long-standing success, the kids and family audience is incredibly loyal, and we see that on Paramount Plus  as well, with kids and family ranking as one of the strongest genres on the service in terms of both engagement and subscriber acquisition,” said Robbins. “So as they stay for our shows and look for even more of them, we’re doubling down on giving them what they want by expanding the universes of the characters they love the best.”

Robbins added that young adults are huge consumers of content, with an average of five SVOD subscribers each. They are also big in social media, creating their own effective marketing campaigns for brands they like. 

Also: Paramount Plus Orders More ‘Star Trek: Discovery’ and ‘Star Trek: Strange New Worlds’

“Pulling it all together, Paramount’s legendary list of beloved IP, and the high profile star power throughout our ecosystem, and the generation-defining hits birthed by Nickelodeon all make Paramount Plus the home to the biggest, most iconic franchises serving everyone from preschoolers to Boomers, and generations X, Y and Z.”

Robbins announced several new franchise-based titles for Paramount Plus including: 

SpongeBob SquarePants: Following Kamp Koral on Paramount Plus and The Patrick Star Show on Nickelodeon (Season 1 will soon be available to stream on Paramount Plus--more SpongeBob content will be coming exclusively to the streaming service with three new movies based on the show’s original characters. The first will drop in 2023. A fourth SpongeBob release from Nickelodeon Animation is currently in development for theatrical release. 

Transformers: Co-produced by Nickelodeon Animation and Hasbro’s Entertainment One, Transformers Earthspark is coming to Nickelodeon and Paramount Plus. The animated series follows a new species of Transformers who must find their place and purpose among Autobots, Decepticons, and the human family who adopts them. The previously announced untitled animated Transformers film, with Josh Cooley attached to direct, will debut in theaters on July 19, 2024 for Paramount Animation and eOne.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: A new animated take on the Turtles is coming to theaters in 2023, produced by Point Grey Pictures’ Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg and directed by Jeff Rowe. Nickelodeon Animation will follow that film with a series of exclusive movies for Paramount Plus beginning in 2023, each centering on one of the property’s storied villains.

Dora The Explorer: The preschool return of Dora in an all-new CG-animated series produced by Nickelodeon Animation debuts in 2023. Also in development is a live-action Dora series inspired by the tone of Dora and the Lost City of Gold, the movie released in 2019.

Blue’s Clues: Blue’s Big City Adventure is the title of an animation/live-action hybrid title from Nickelodeon Animation set to premiere later this year, It follows host Josh and Blue as they head to New York City, with the help of Steve and Joe, to audition for a big Broadway musical. 

New movies for young adults coming to Paramount Plus include::

Fantasy Football: The original live-action movie follows 16-year-old Amber Coleman (Marsai Martin of Black-ish) who discovers she can control her professional football player dad’s prowess on the field through her video game. Produced in partnership with Nickelodeon and Awesomeness Films, LeBron James and Maverick Carter’s The SpringHill Company, and Marsai Martin and Joshua Martin’s Genius Entertainment.

Honor Society: A live-action comedic film that follows Honor (Angourie Rice from Spider-Man: No Way Home, Mare of Easttown), an ambitious high school senior whose sole focus is getting into Harvard, assuming she can first score the coveted recommendation from her guidance counselor, Mr. Calvin (Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Kick-Ass, Superbad). Honor concocts a plan to take down her top three student competitors, until things take a turn when she unexpectedly falls for her biggest competition, Michael (Gaten Matarazzo, Stranger Things, Prank Encounters). 

Hush Hush:: A new original live-action film adaptation of the best-selling novels by Becca Fitzpatrick, Hush Hush is a supernatural romance story about the forbidden love between a girl and a fallen angel. Production is slated for 2022 in partnership with BCDF Pictures and Entertainment 360.  ■ 

“As we’ve known with Nickelodeon’s long-standing success, the kids and family audience is incredibly loyal, and we see that on Paramount Plus as well, with kids and family ranking as one of the strongest genres on the service in terms of both engagement and subscriber acquisition,” said Robbins. “So as they stay for our shows and look for even more of them, we’re doubling down on giving them what they want by expanding the universes of the characters they love the best.”

Also: TCA: Paramount Plus Renews ‘Mayor of Kingstown’ and ‘SEAL Team’, Teases New Programs

Robbins added that young adults are huge consumers of content, with an average of five SVOD subscribers each. They are also big in social media, creating their own effective marketing campaigns for brands they like.

Also: Paramount Plus Orders More ‘Star Trek: Discovery’ and ‘Star Trek: Strange New Worlds’

“Pulling it all together, Paramount’s legendary list of beloved IP, and the high profile star power throughout our ecosystem, and the generation-defining hits birthed by Nickelodeon all make Paramount Plus the home to the biggest, most iconic franchises serving everyone from preschoolers to Boomers, and generations X, Y and Z.”

Robbins announced several new franchise-based titles for Paramount Plus including:

SpongeBob SquarePants: Following Kamp Koral on Paramount Plus and The Patrick Star Show on Nickelodeon (Season1 will soon be available to stream on Paramount Plus) more SpongeBob content will be coming exclusively to the streaming service with three new movies based on the show’s original characters. The first will drop in 2023. A fourth SpongeBob release from Nickelodeon Animation is currently in development for theatrical release.

Transformers: Co-produced by Nickelodeon Animation and Hasbro’s Entertainment One, Transformers Earthspark is coming to Nickelodeon and Paramount Plus. The animated series follows a new species of Transformers who must find their place and purpose among Autobots, Decepticons, and the human family who adopts them. The previously announced untitled animated Transformers film, with Josh Cooley attached to direct, will debut in theaters on July 19, 2024 for Paramount Animation and eOne.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: A new animated take on the Turtles is coming to theaters in 2023, produced by Point Grey Pictures’ Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg and directed by Jeff Rowe. Nickelodeon Animation will follow that film with a series of exclusive movies for Paramount Plus beginning in 2023, each centering on one of the property’s storied villains.

Dora The Explorer: The preschool return of Dora in an all-new CG-animated series produced by Nickelodeon Animation debuts in 2023. Also in development is a live-action Dora series inspired by the tone of Dora and the Lost City of Gold, the movie released in 2019.

Blue’s Clues: Blue’s Big City Adventure is the title of an animation/live-action hybrid title from Nickelodeon Animation set to premiere later this year, It follows host Josh and Blue as they head to New York City, with the help of Steve and Joe, to audition for a big Broadway musical.

New movies for young adults coming to Paramount Plus include::

Fantasy Football: The original live-action movie follows 16-year-old Amber Coleman (Marsai Martin of Black-ish) who discovers she can control her professional football player dad’s prowess on the field through her video game. Produced in partnership with Nickelodeon and Awesomeness Films, LeBron James and Maverick Carter’s The SpringHill Company, and Marsai Martin and Joshua Martin’s Genius Entertainment.

Honor Society: A live-action comedic film that follows Honor (Angourie Rice from Spider-Man: No Way Home, Mare of Easttown), an ambitious high school senior whose sole focus is getting into Harvard, assuming she can first score the coveted recommendation from her guidance counselor, Mr. Calvin (Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Kick-Ass, Superbad). Honor concocts a plan to take down her top three student competitors, until things take a turn when she unexpectedly falls for her biggest competition, Michael (Gaten Matarazzo, Stranger Things, Prank Encounters).

Hush Hush: A new original live-action film adaptation of the best-selling novels by Becca Fitzpatrick, Hush Hush is a supernatural romance story about the forbidden love between a girl and a fallen angel. Production is slated for 2022 in partnership with BCDF Pictures and Entertainment 360.  ■ 

Nickelodeon will tackle the issue of kids and mental health in a new Nick News episode debuting on February 16, network officials said.

The 30-minute special, hosted by CBS News Correspondent Vladimir Duthiers, will feature U.S. General Dr. Vivek Murthy as she joins a group of middle schoolers for an open roundtable discussion where the kids share personal stories of how they manage their mental wellness and get advice from the nation’s top doctor on how to cope with anxiety and stress, according to the network. 

In addition, kid journalist Rory Hu will interview U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen about the current state of the U.S. Economy as well as the new American Women Quarters Program, which celebrates the accomplishments and contributions made by women to the development and history of our country, Nickelodeon said.

“The last two years have been challenging, but most especially for kids across the country who have had to contend with a pandemic, economic uncertainty, a fraught political landscape and so much more”, said Magalie Laguerre-Wilkinson, VP of news programming, Nickelodeon and executive producer of Nick News in a statement. “In this episode of Nick News, we do what we’re aiming to do, give kids a platform to voice their thoughts and feelings, and because knowledge is not only power but empowering, we bring in the experts U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy and U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen to inform and connect our audience to vital resources.” ■

The return of two, long-running cable series highlights a busy list of show premieres this week.

Netflix on Jan. 21 will debut the fourth and final season of its Emmy-winning drama series, Ozark, starring Jason Bateman and Laura Linney. The final season will feature two parts consisting of seven episodes each, according to Netflix. 

Showtime on Jan. 23 will premiere the sixth season of Billions minus co-lead actor Damian Lewis, who departed the show after the fifth season. Paul Giamatti and Corey Stoll will serve as co-stars for the upcoming season.

Among new series launching this week is Hulu's How I Met Your Father -- a spinoff of CBS' long-running How I Met Your Mother series -- which debuts Jan. 18.

Below are video trailers and premiere dates for several shows debuting the week of January 18 to January 23 on cable networks and streaming services (for some videos, viewer discretion is advised):

Jan. 20 – Single Drunk Female (dramedy) – Freeform

Jan. 20 – La Fortuna (drama) – AMC Plus

Jan. 20 – Looney Tunes Cartoons (animation) – HBO Max

Jan. 20 – The Marfa Tapes (music) – Paramount Plus

Jan. 20 – True Story with Ed & Randall (reality) – Peacock

Jan. 20 – Warped! (comedy) – Nickelodeon

Jan. 21 – As We See It (dramedy) - Prime Video

Jan. 21 -- Fraggle Rock: Back to the Rock (comedy) – Apple TV Plus

Jan. 21 – Munich: The Edge of War (drama) – Netflix

Jan. 21 – Servant (returning series) – Apple TV Plus

Jan. 23 – Earnin’ It: The NFL’s Forward Progress (sports reality) – Peacock

Nate Burleson, Noah Eagle and Gabrielle Nevaeh Green will return to the broadcast booth as Nickelodeon again televises a slime-filled, kid friendly version of the NFL Wild Card Playoff game on January 16.

Young Dylan, of Tyler Perry’s Young Dylan, will make his debut as a sideline reporter during the game.

The special presentation of the game by CBS Sports and Nickelodeon is part of parent company ViacomCBS’s deal with the NFL. More traditional coverage of the campaign will air on CBS and stream on Paramount Plus. The Nickelodeon version of the game will also be available on the NFL mobile app for free.

“The collaboration between the NFL, Nickelodeon, and CBS Sports for our first NFL Wild Card Game onNickelodeon was terrific and exceeded all expectations,” said CBS Sports’s Shawn Robbins, who will serve as coordinating producer, 

“We look forward to another exciting, slime-filled, Nick-ified presentation and the return of our talented team in the booth,” Robbins said. “Last season, Noah, Nate and Gabrielle connected so well with viewers with their chemistry, enthusiasm and knowledge, and we know our NFL Slimetime co-host Young Dylan will be an excellent addition as sideline reporter, completing this fun-filled crew.”

Last season’s inaugural NFL Wild Card Game on Nickelodeon between the New Orleans Saints and Chicago Bears averaged 2.06 million viewers, making it the most-watched show on Nick in about four years.The game attracted about 30 million viewers across all platforms.

Burleson is co-host of CBS Mornings and a former NFL player and analyst.

Eagle is the 20-something son of sportscaster Ian Eagle and broadcasts college football games, serves as the Los Angeles Clippers’ play-by-play man and contributes to the Tennis Channel.

Green stars in Nick’s That Girl Lay Lay and All That.

Young Dylan and Burleson host NFL Slimetime, a weekly NFL series for kids and families, The show features Nick-ified highlights and game footage; youth football spotlights; special celebrity guest appearances; interviews with NFL players; the weekly awarding of the Nickelodeon Valuable Player (NVP) trophy; and entertaining segments highlighting players and teams on and off the field. NFL Slimetime airs  Wednesdays on Nickelodeon.

The NFL Wild Card Game on Nickelodeon is produced by CBS Sports in association with Nickelodeon Productions. Sean McManus and Harold Bryant serve as Executive Producers of the NFL on CBS. CBS Sports’s Shawn Robbins is coordinating producer of the game along with producer, Ken Mack and director, Suzanne Smith. Production for Nickelodeon is overseen by Ashley Kaplan, executive VP, Nickelodeon & Awesomeness Unscripted & Digital Franchise Studio, ViacomCBS; Paul J. Medford, VP, unscripted current series; Luke Wahl, VP, Digital Studios; and Jennifer Bryson, VP, production, tentpoles, events & music & specials. ■

Kids-targeted streaming service Sensical has named former Nickelodeon executive Sharon Kroll Cohen to head its marketing efforts.

As vice president of marketing, Cohen will oversee content marketing, social media marketing, public relations and events for the Common Sense Networks-owned Sensical streaming service, which is targeted to kids 2 to 10 years of age. 

Previously, Cohen was Executive VP for  Nickelodeon Experiences, where she expanded the Nickelodeon brand and IP beyond their linear and digital platforms through real-word experiences, according to Sensical. 

“Over the past year, I’ve had the privilege of partnering closely with Sharon on the launch of Sensical. Bringing the streaming service to life during the course of the pandemic certainly had its set of challenges, but Sharon’s commitment to excellence and determination to succeed impressed me beyond words,” said Common Sense Networks CEO Eric Berger in a statement. ■ 

Nickelodeon will bring back its live-action comedy series Tyler Perry's Young Dylan for a third season, the network said Thursday.

The Perry-produced series, which stars Dylan Gilmer as Dylan — a young hip-hop mogul-in-training — will continue to follow Dylan as he continues his pursuit of stardom while getting his family into hilarious hijinks along the way, according to the network.

The series also stars Carl Anthony Payne II, Mieko Hillman, Aloma Lesley Wright, Celina Smith, Hero Hunter and Jet Miller. 

Production on season three of Tyler Perry's Young Dylan will begin next year at Tyler Perry Studios in Atlanta.

 HBO Max’s highly anticipated premiere of sci/fi film Dune highlights a light week of new series and returning shows debuting this week.

Dune, the streaming service’s reimagining of Frank Herbert’s 1965 science fiction novel, debuts Oct. 21 on both HBO Max and in movie theaters. The film is executive produced by Denis Villeneuve and stars Timothée Chalamet, Rebecca Ferguson, Oscar Issac, Josh Brolin, Stellan Skarsgård, Zendaya, Dave Bautista and Jason Momoa. 

Another Sci-fi-themed drama, Apple TV Plus’s Invasion, premieres on Oct. 22. The series follows an alien invasion from various locations around the world.

Below are video trailers and premiere dates for several shows debuting the week of Oct. 4-Oct. 10 on cable networks and streaming services (for some videos, viewer discretion is advised):

Oct. 18 -- Women Is Losers (drama movie) -- HBO Max

Oct. 19 -- The Boulet Brothers’ Dragula (reality) -- Shudder

Oct. 20 -- Four Hours at the Capitol (documentary) -- HBO

Oct. 21 -- The Girl in the Woods (drama) -- Peacock

Oct. 21 -- Introducing, Selma Blair (documentary) -- Discovery Plus

Oct. 21 -- The Next Thing You Eat (reality) -- Hulu

Oct. 21 -- Sex, Love & Goop (reality) -- Netflix

Oct. 22 -- Inside Job (animated comedy) -- Netflix

Oct. 22 -- Locke & Key (reality series) -- Netflix

Oct. 22 -- Maya and the Three (animation) -- Netflix

Oct. 23 -- Danger Force (returning series) -- Nickelodeon

Oct. 24 -- Insecure (returning series) -- HBO

Oct. 24 -- Curb Your Enthusiasm (returning series) -- HBO

Nickelodeon Animation president Ramsey Naito will add oversight of Paramount Pictures Animation to her job portfolio after being tapped Thursday to lead that unit of the movie studio. 

As president of animation and development for Paramount Animation and Nickelodeon Animation, Naito will oversee all projects for the film studio as well as for the kids-targeted cable network, where she has served as president since last year. Naito replaces current Paramount Animation president Mireille Soria, who is leaving the company. 

Naito, who joined Nickelodeon Animation in 2018, has orchestrated the launch of the network's largest animation slate in network history, feeding its content pipeline across all formats and platforms. In 2021 alone Naito has overseen the launch of such projects as PAW Patrol: The Movie; The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge on the Run and two original spinoffs, Kamp Koral: SpongeBob’s Under Years and The Patrick Star Show; Baby Shark; Blue’s Clues & You!; Santiago of the Seas; The Loud House Movie; and Rugrats, which was recently renewed for a second season. 

Read Also: The Five Spot: Ramsey Naito, President, Nickelodeon Animation 

“Ramsey is one of the savviest executives and creative minds in our industry,”  Paramount Pictures president and CEO Brian Robbins said in a statement. “During her time at Nick, she has transformed and reinvigorated the Animation Studio division with her sharp business instincts, deep stable of relationships and unique eye for great storytelling, and I’m thrilled to have her bring her talents to this expanded role where she can further elevate our overall animation business.” 

Naito will now oversee several upcoming projects for both Paramount and Nickelodeon, including Star Trek: Prodigy from Nickelodeon Animation and CBS Studios; the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles theatrical motion picture, best selling book adaptations of Big Nate and Real Pigeons Fight Crime, an original Transformers series and an animated series based on the Monster High franchise. 

Soria had led the Paramount Animation division since 2017. ”Mireille has been a driving force in building out a new, dynamic and modern chapter of Paramount Animation,“ Robbins said. ”We thank her for her many contributions to the organization and wish her the best in her future endeavors.“   

ViacomCBS’s Nickelodeon kids channel has ordered an addition 20 episodes of Ryan’s Mystery Playdate, expanding its season four pickup to 30-half hour shows.

The new season four episodes will start to air Sept. 27. 

In the premiere, Ryan’s Fizzy Playdate/Ryan’s Artistic Playdate, Ryan and his family are joined by Onyx Family of YouTube as he collects hints through a series of challenges.

Future episodes of the pre-school series show Ryan in live action with guests including WWE’s The Miz, the GEM Sisters, a sneaker designer and a piano prodigy.

Full episodes of Ryan’s Mystery Playdate are available to stream on Paramount Plus, Nick Jr. On Demand and download-to-own services, as well as NickJr.com and the Nick Jr. App, which also features short-form content.

Paramount Plus will offer more baby hijinks with the renewal of its animated series Rugrats for a second season, the streaming service said Tuesday.

The series, a reboot of the popular 1990s Nickelodeon series, returns for its sophomore campaign on Oct. 7 and will once again feature the imaginative exploits of Tommy, Chuckie, Angelica, Susie, Phil and Lil as they embark on new adventures, said the streaming service. Season one of the series debuted on Paramount Plus in May.

Read also: Familiarity Breeds Audience for Kids Show Reboots

The new season also includes a Halloween-themed special in which Tommy needs his friends’ help to save Angelica after she turns into a werewolf at a Halloween party as their parents seem to disappear one by one, according to the service.

“Kids series are a key driver of engagement for Paramount Plus,” said Tanya Giles, Chief Programming Officer for Paramount Plus in a statement. “With the renewal of Rugrats for a second season, we look forward to bringing even more adventures with Tommy, Chuckie, Angelica and the rest of the Rugrats for kids and families to enjoy.”

Added Nickelodeon Animation President Ramsey Naito: “This next season of Rugrats will dive even deeper into the secret life of babies and their unsuspecting parents, while continuing to highlight the main themes of friendship and family. For 30 years, the Rugrats have resonated with fans around the globe and we can’t wait to continue telling original and fresh stories with these beloved characters.” 

Nickelodeon Wednesday night (Sept. 15) will look to endear young viewers to the sport of football with its new original primetime series NFL Slimetime.

The weekly series, a collaboration between Nickelodeon, the NFL and CBS Sports, looks to build on Nick’s successful, network-branded telecast of last January's Chicago Bears-New Orleans Saints NFL Wildcard playoff game by offering league highlights and player interviews delivered from a Nickelodeon perspective. The series is hosted by former NFL player, The NFL Today analyst and CBS Mornings co-host Nate Burleson and Dylan Gilmer, star of the network series Tyler Perry’s Young Dylan series, and also includes sports correspondent Dylan Schefter.

I had a chance to speak to NFL Slimetime executive producer and showrunner Shawn Robbins shortly after he finished filming the series' first episode to discuss expectations for the 23-episode series as well as the collaboration between the league and the kids-targeted brand. An edited version of the interview appears below.

Picture This: What is Nickelodeon looking to accomplish with NFL Slimetime?

Shawn Robbins: The show is really an extension of what we did with the Wild Card game — it extends the partnership with the NFL and it brings sports to Nickelodeon. We know that we were able to really merge the NFL and CBS Sports with Nickelodeon, and obviously nobody reaches a youthful audience better than Nickelodeon.

PT: Was the Wild Card game and now NFL Slimetime an effort to provide kids with a greater understanding of football, or was it an opportunity to provide sports programming for Nickelodeon’s lineup?

SR: Both of those things. I think the game of football is great in itself, but if you want to reach kids, Nickelodeon has this fantastic [intellectual property] that touches kids of all ages. There’s also a nostalgic value to the Nickelodeon brand that also touches adults, so we know that there’s a crossover opportunity where we can reach both kids and their parents. Mom and Dad may watch the live football games on Sunday, and now we’re giving them a product where they can introduce their kids to the game using the Nickelodeon brand. It’s just really special.

PT: What should viewers expect to see on the show?

SR: What’s great is we have a lot of fun with the show. Much like the wildcard game we want to keep the values and tradition of the game and be respectful to the game of football, but we had fun with it. The show will feature action from the games on Sunday, Monday and Thursday mixed with what the Nickelodeon brand represents. We asked the players fun, Nickelodeon-style questions and they had a great time with it. The players aren’t that far off [age-wise] from the Nickelodeon target audience, so it’s been really special to see that come together.

PT: What kind of questions did you ask the players?

SR: Questions like, ‘is having good breath important coming into the huddle, or what might have been the worst thing that you’ve eaten before the game?’ The players really responded fantastically to that. Also Dylan Schefter did an interview yesterday with [wide receiver] Christian Kirk from the Arizona Cardinals who scored two touchdowns in Sunday’s game. They had such a fun interview about the game. I’ve done a lot of these interviews before with all of our big guys at CBS Sports over the years, and it’s such a different experience to see how players talk to kids. The players get it, and I loved how they interacted with Dylan. I’m looking forward to doing a lot more of that throughout the season.

PT: Does the show get into the X's and O’s of the sport?

SR: We do a little bit. You’ll see during the show that Nate Burleson does break down a play, so we will get into some X’s and O’s from a broader base standpoint. We want to bring kids into the game and that’s how we’ll do it … there’s definitely some teaching involved.

Also Read: For CBS Sports's Sean McManus, a Whole Different Ballgame

PT: Do you expect you’ll have to make adjustments to the show as the NFL season progresses?

SR: Oh my goodness, I hope so. We’re going to build on it. This was our first show and we put the team together pretty quickly to get this out. Like any show, you look at the last episode and see what you did and how we can make it better.

BET will look to create premium television series and films as part of BET Studios, a new studio production company offering equity ownership for Black content creators, the network said Wednesday.

The studio venture will be headed by former Warner Bros. Television executive Aisha Summers-Burke, who will report to BET president Scott Mills and will be responsible for working collaboratively with the studio’s creative partners and key internal constituencies. Principal partners in the venture include content producers Kenya Barris, Rashida Jones and Aaron Rahsaan Thomas.  

BET Studios will look to develop content for BET and sister streaming service BET Plus as well as other ViacomCBS-owned networks including Paramount Plus, Showtime, CBS and Nickelodeon, according to the company. The service will also select third-party platforms that seek content from rising Black creatives. 

“The demand for premium content from Black creators has accelerated dramatically as a result of both the rapidly changing media and social landscapes,” Mills said in a statement. “BET, with our 40-year legacy of celebrating Black culture and the full power of the ViacomCBS ecosystem, is uniquely positioned to service this demand. As a company with its origin in Black entrepreneurship, we are incredibly excited to create the first major studio to provide Black creators with ownership, creative freedom and the unparalleled partnership and support of BET. I am thrilled to have Aisha at the helm of this venture, and I look forward to our collaboration with our amazing creative partners in BET Studios.” 

Added David Nevins, chief content officer, scripted originals for Paramount Plus and chairman and CEO of Showtime Networks: “BET Studios is an exciting and novel extension of the storied BET brand, and we have a structure well-suited to our times to bring top talent into this production company with real ownership. Scott Mills deserves tremendous credit for driving this innovative new business from idea to reality – and Kenya, Rashida and Aaron, could not be a more talented or in-demand group to lead this venture along with Aisha Summers.” 

Also Read: Showtime Head David Nevins Put in Charge of Paramount TV Studios

Burke, who most recently served as VP of scripted television for the cable and streaming division of Warner Horizon before it merged with Warner Bros. TV in 2020, said that the venture will continue to build on BET's legacy of offering quality programming to the Black community. 

“With the launch of BET Studios, we are excited to introduce a new model that opens the aperture to a broad array of platforms and supports the full range of content from Black creators,” she said. “This entrepreneurial environment offers creatives the opportunity to produce diverse high-end content reflecting all aspects of entertainment.”

 The COVID-19 pandemic has not slowed down the Nickelodeon animation machine as it continues to grind out both new series and reboots of classic network shows under the auspices of network animation president Ramsey Naito.

Nickelodeon Animation has more than 50 series and movie projects in development, including movie projects for Blue’s Clues, Baby Shark and The Loud House as well as new TV featuring classic franchises as The Smurfs, Avatar, SpongeBob SquarePants, Paw Patrol and Star Trek, along with a series based on the best-selling Big Nate children’s books. That’s on top of rebooting such iconic animated shows such as Rugrats, which is currently airing on ViacomCBS streaming service Paramount Plus. 

Naito, who oversees Nickelodeon’s animation content across all formats and platforms from linear television to streaming and theatrical movies, paints the division’s future strategy for B+C/Multichannel News senior content producer, programming R. Thomas Umstead. The interview was edited for space and clarity. 

Growing up, did you have aspirations of working in animation? I never thought I’d work in animation. I loved animation but, the closest thing to animators that I knew were illustrators or graphic designers. It wasn’t until I went to CalArts [California Institute of the Arts] for grad school that I was introduced to the world of animation. 

Is animation as popular today than it’s ever been, given all of the different platforms and distribution outlets that we have? I think animation today is more popular than ever. There are so many ways to access animation, and because of that I think that people have been able to tap into and watch all styles of animation. Kids today can go on their phone and watch Looney Tunes, SpongeBob or anime from Japan. I also think that animation really persevered during the pandemic. 

How much did the pandemic impact Nickelodeon’s animation production, and how were you able to navigate through it? No question that it impacted us, but literally within one week [after the shutdown] we pivoted to a work-from-home workflow. Everyone was set up at home to continue doing their jobs, from designing, storyboarding, writing, editing — you name it. We were able to sustain our entire studio production pipeline from home. As a result, we became really in demand. This past year we’ve hired over 500 artists at the studio because of all the shows we’ve green-lit, all the season renewals and all the movies. We were really able to continue our production strategy and grow our content pipeline. 

It seems Nickelodeon is going back to its animation roots for new original programming with reboots of Rugrats and Blue’s Clues. How much of Nickelodeon’s animation past will factor into its animation future? I started my career working on Nickelodeon shows as a [production assistant] 20 years ago — I was at the studio when Steve Hillenburg made SpongeBob — so coming back in this capacity I’ve seen Nickelodeon [animation] grow with titles like SpongeBob, Avatar and now Star Trek that speak to multiple generations of viewers, including grandparents, parents, uncles and aunts. So by reinvigorating these titles we’re able to speak to families. Parents can invite their kids to watch and experience a show or a franchise that they love. There’s real power there. At the same time we are still invested in our animated originals. It’s a big part of our DNA, and we have a new generation of creators that have new ideas that are adding to this wonderfully rich library that Nickelodeon already has. 

What role does animation play in the overall legacy of Nickelodeon? It may be the heart and soul of the brand. We are a kids’ network, and animation is beloved by kids and family. Every now and then, you get something like SpongeBob that just speaks to all audiences, but animation is hugely important to the brand within our library and within the lines of business that it creates for the company, including consumer products. In short, animation is probably the heart and soul of Nickelodeon.

Nickelodeon will once again televise a live National Football League Wild Card playoff game as part of a new agreement between the network, CBS Sports and the NFL which also includes a new weekly primetime series.

Nickelodeon on Sept. 15 will launch NFL Slimetime, a new half-hour weekly series that will feature “Nick-ified” league highlights and game footage, youth football spotlights, and special guest appearances by Nickelodeon and NFL players. The 23-episode series will be hosted by CBS Sports’ analyst Nate Burleson and Nickelodeon star Young Dylan, and will also feature teen sports correspondent Dylan Schefter and Lincoln Loud, according to the network.

NFL Slimetime episodes will be available on streaming service Paramount Plus the day after airing on Nickelodeon. 

"I am excited to build on the success of last season’s NFL Wild Card Game on Nickelodeon with NFL Slimetime and another Wild Card presentation, Shawn Robbins, Executive Producer and Showrunner of NFL Slimetime said. “From Nick-ified highlights, expert advice, kid-focused fun and special guest appearances, NFL Slimetime will wow kids and families as only Nickelodeon can on a weekly basis.”

Nickelodeon in January 2022 will air a kids-targeted version of an NFL Wild Card game as part of a simulcast with CBS. Nickelodeon’s January 2021 simulcast of the Chicago Bears-New Orleans Saints NFL Wild Card telecast with CBS helped both CBS Sports and the NFL reach younger viewers, according to CBS Sports chairman Sean McManus. 

Read Also: For CBS Sports's Sean McManus, a Whole Different Ballgame 

“Our inaugural NFL Wild Card Game on Nickelodeon was an outstanding display of the power and the ability of ViacomCBS to continue to reach broader and younger audiences,” he said. “We are thrilled to team up with the NFL and Nickelodeon this season, offering kids and families a full season of unique and unparalleled NFL content, including our second edition of the NFL Wild Card Game on Nickelodeon." 

Brian Robbins, who heads Nickelodeon as president, kids & family entertainment at ViacomCBS, is expected to be named head of Paramount Pictures as ViacomCBS gears up to create more content for Paramount Plus.

Robbins would replace Jim Gianopulos, now chairman and CEO of Paramount Pictures, and retain his oversight of the kids business, according to a source, confirming a report in the Wall Street Journal.

An official announcement was said to be imminent, but officials had no comment.

Robbins joined Nickelodeon as president in 2018. Before he started the multiplatform media company Awesomeness, which was purchased by Viacom in 2018. Before that he was an actor, writer and producer of movies and television shows.

When ViacomCBS announced a new streaming content leadership structure in June, Robbins was tapped as chief content officer, kids and family for Paramount Plus. In July Robbins was tapped for global responsibilities for the company's kids businesses.

There have been questions about whether ViacomCBS was big enough to generate enough content to compete in the streaming wars. One of Paramount Plus’ strengths was its Nickelodeon kids franchises and the company appears to be counting on Robbins to deliver more content that will appeal to younger audiences.

FX's latest edition of its American Crime Story anthology series headlines a busy week of series premieres.

Impeachment: American Crime Story launches Sept. 7 and chronicles the events leading up to the impeachment of President Bill Clinton amid the Monica Lewinsky scandal, said the network. The series stars Clive Owen, Sarah Paulson, Edie Falco and Beanie Feldstein.  

Returning series premiering this week include Netflix's Lucifer, which debuts its sixth and final season on Sept. 10, and OWN's Queen Sugar, which returns for its sixth season on Sept. 7.

Below are video trailers and premiere dates for several shows debuting the week of Sept. 7 to Sept. 12 on cable networks and streaming services (for some videos, viewer discretion is advised):

Sept. 7 -- On The Verge (drama) -- Netflix

Sept. 8 -- Doogie Kamealoha, M.D. (drama) -- Disney Plus

Sept. 8 -- Wu-Tang: An American Saga (drama) -- Hulu

Sept. 9 -- All the Queen’s Men (drama) -- BET Plus

Sept. 9 -- Frogger (game show) -- Peacock

Sept. 9 -- Kin (drama) -- AMC Plus

Sept. 10 -- Come From Away (musical) -- Apple TV Plus

Sept. 10 -- The Smurfs (animation) -- Nickelodeon

Sept. 10 -- The Voyeurs (thriller) -- Prime Video

Sept. 10 -- Malignant (horror movie) -- HBO Max

Sept. 12 -- American Rust (drama) -- Showtime

Sept. 12 -- Scenes From a Marriage (drama) -- HBO

Sabrina Caluori has been named senior VP, brand and content strategy for ViacomCBS’s Nickelodeon unit.

Caluori most recently was founder and president of Theia Communications, a marketing consultancy focused on media and education. Before that she spent 12 years at HBO, rising to executive VP of marketing and digital media.

At Nickelodeon, Caluori will oversee the launches of original shows and movies, brand strategy, media buying, performance-based and lifecycle marketing and marketing analytics.

Caluori will report to Nickelodeon CMO Jenny Wall and will be based in New York.

Also Read: Nickelodeon Upfront Takes Advertisers to Its Multiverse of Platforms

“Sabrina is a creative brand strategist and energetic spirit with a proven track record of delivering global marketing campaigns that resonate culturally,” said Wall. “In a rapidly changing media landscape, Sabrina’s vast experience in digital transformation and her depth of knowledge in digital and social media and emerging technologies will help move Nickelodeon forward as its content, audiences and platforms continue to grow.”

Also Read: Nickelodeon, Mattel Plan ‘Monster High’ Series, Movie

Caluori was one of Multichannel News' 40 Under 40 in 2013 when she was a VP at HBO. Before HBO, Caluori was with the interactive agency Deep Focus, whose clients included HBO, Miramax, Google, Court TV and Comedy Central.

Nickelodeon has big news for its Baby Shark.

The kids‘ network is developing an animated movie based on the brand, and it is picking up 26 episodes of season two of its preschool series Baby Shark’s Big Show!

The movie is being co-produced by Nickelodeon Animation Studio and SmartStudy, the entertainment company behind children’s brand Pinkfong.

Also Read: Nick Greenlights ‘Baby Shark’ Series, Doo, Doo, Doo, Doo

Baby Shark’s Big Show! was nominated for a Daytime Emmy and ranks No. 2 in the ratings among kids 2-5 during the second quarter trailing only Nick’s PAW Patrol.

“Baby Shark is an example of how we’ve been successful in bringing beloved properties that kids love from other platforms to Nickelodeon and opening up a whole new world of adventures," said Ramsey Naito, president of Nickelodeon Animation. “As home to the biggest franchises kids love, we’re continuing to grow their footprint by introducing brand-new characters and storylines, and creating original content in every format for fans everywhere.”

The voice actors behind Baby Shark’s Big Show! include Kimiko Glenn, Luke Youngblood, Natasha Rothwell, Eric Edelstein, Debra Wilson and Patrick Warburton.

Baby Shark’s Big Show! is executive produced by Gary “Doodles” DiRaffaele and Tommy Sica , with Whitney Ralls serving as co-executive producer. The series is produced by Nickelodeon Animation Studio in Burbank, California, with production overseen by Eryk Casemiro, senior VP, Nickelodeon Preschool.

Nickelodeon will team with Awesomeness Films and LeBron James’ SpringHill Company to produce a new original film, Fantasy Football, the companies said Monday.

The film, produced by and starring Marsai Martin (Black-ish), follows a 15-year old girl who discovers she can control her pro football player dad’s prowess on the field through her video game, said Nickelodeon.

SpringHill and Martin's Genius Entertainment will serve as executive producers of the film, which will debut on Paramount Plus in 2022.

Also slated to debut next year on the streaming service is Nickelodeon and Awesomeness Films’ Hush Hush, a film adaptation of the young adult novels written by Becca Fitzpatrick. The films follows a 16-year old high school student who falls for a new student and unwittingly get caught in the crosshairs of an ancient battle between fallen angels and the immortal, said Nick. 

Nickelodeon and Awesomeness Films Studio head Syrinthia Studer said in making the announcement:  “With the continuing growth of Nickelodeon and Awesomeness’s live-action film studio business, we are curating a slate of aspirational, heartfelt films for everyone. From the fantasy and romance themes found in Hush Hush, to the love of sport and family captured in Fantasy Football, we can’t wait to entertain audiences everywhere with new YA and family stories about what they already love.”

Disney Channel and Nickelodeon are rolling out new programming spinoffs from popular kids and family-friendly franchises in the hopes of drawing in both loyal fans and new viewers.

Nickelodeon today (July 9) will debut the animated series The Patrick Star Show, based on the starfish character from its successful SpongeBob SquarePants franchise. The new series follows Patrick Star living at home with his family, where he hosts his own variety show from his bedroom. 

The Patrick Star Show is the second SpongeBob SquarePants spinoff series, following the March debut of Kamp Koral: SpongeBob Under Years on Paramount Plus. Nickelodeon EVP of programming Paul DeBenedittis said The Patrick Star Show and Kamp Koral continue to build on the popularity of SpongeBob SquarePants and helps draw fans of the franchise to the new spinoff shows.

Read Also: New Season of 'iCarly on Paramount Plus

“SpongeBob is now a universe — we have the series which will continue, we launched Kamp Koral, and we’re launching The Patrick Star Show. We had a theatrical movie last year, so that world will continue to grow and evolve, which is pure joy for a SpongeBob fan,” DeBenedittis said.

Disney’s 2001 Monsters Inc. animated movie franchise extended its brand tentacles with the July 7 premiere of the Monsters at Work animated series on streaming service Disney Plus. The new project — the third from the Monsters Inc. franchise following a prequel movie, the 2013 Monsters University — follows the adventures within the Monsters Incorporated power plant after it switched to using children’s laughter as energy rather than screams, as well as a new monster who has to learn how to make children laugh rather than scream in fear, according to the service.

Read Also: Disney Plus Adds Bite to National Geographic's 'Sharkfest' Lineup 

While the Monsters Inc. franchise remains popular with viewers, Disney Branded Television president and chief content officer Gary Marsh said the Monsters at Work series allows the company to extend the film’s success into a new series where it can reach a new generation of fans.

“The film is beloved, but we were able to take that and find a fresh way in,” Marsh said. “Viewers are incredibly savvy and you might get more media attention with a popular IP (intellectual property), but if you don’t have a great story with great storytellers, they won't stick around.”

The NickWatch, a wearable consumer product featuring Nickelodeon characters, was unveiled by ViacomCBS Networks International Tuesday at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona.

The Nickwatch will connect kids and parents via voice and text and feature photo filters, sound effects, games and stickers based on Nickelodeon shows and characters. Content will be updated on an ongoing basis.

The product is expected to be available next year and is being developed with Watchinu, an Israeli technology start up. Watchinu will operate the device via a licensee agreement with ViacomCBS Networks International.

Each device will come with the smart watch body, two watch bands (one playful Nickelodeon band and one more adult band) and a character- based charging unit.

Pricing, distribution and market availability have not yet been disclosed.

Also Read: Nickelodeon Upfront Takes Advertisers to Its Multiverse of Platforms

“Now, as we look to the future, the NickWatch marks a milestone as the first connected smartwatch to harness the power of our consumer brands. This strategic product launch will leverage our IP and content to further strengthen our position as a leading commercial partner with diverse consumer touchpoints creating a new immersive experience,” said Raffaele Annecchino, CEO of ViacomCBS Networks International. 

Also Read: All of the New Shows Coming to Nickelodeon

The company said the NickWatch is designed to bring families together, while nurturing a sense of independence and helping children to explore the world, knowing that their caregivers are just one tap away.

The platform allows parents or caregivers to text the child from their phone, and kids can respond with pre-written responses, voice-to-text, emojis, or photos, the company said. The child can also call contacts and receive incoming calls from pre-selected contacts. Grownups can create group threads and can also send sticker messages, timers, reminders, photos, voice messages, and create polls.

Parents and kids can stay connected via a map feature that will allow caregivers and family members to see the current location of everyone in the family via GPS, Wi-Fi and cellular towers.

Several new original series and films as well as a reboot of a popular kids-targeted show highlight new programming slated to premiere during the week leading into Father’s Day.

Disney Plus on June 18 will premiere comedy-drama Physical, starring Rose Byrne as an unhappy housewife turned star workout instructor during the 1980s aerobics boom. 

Paramount Plus on June 17 will debut iCarly, a revival of the 2000s Nickelodeon hit series. Miranda Cosgrove, Nathan Kress and Jerry Trainor will reprise their roles from the original iCarly for the new series.

In a nod to Father’s Day, Netflix on June 18 will premiere Fatherhood, a movie drama starring Kevin Hart as a widower taking care of his newborn daughter.

Below are video trailers and premiere dates for several shows debuting the week of June 14 to June 20 on cable networks and streaming services (for some videos, viewer discretion is advised):

June 16 -- Dave (returning series) -- FXX

June 16 -- Penguin Town (documentary) -- Netflix

June 17 -- Black Summer (returning series) -- Netflix

June 17 -- Generation (drama) -- HBO Max

June 17 -- Intelligence (returning series) -- Peacock

June 18 -- Luca (animation) -- Disney Plus

June 18 -- Rise Again: Tulsa and the Red Summer (documentary) -- Nat Geo

June 19 -- Fight the Power: The Movements That Changed America (documentary) -- History

June 20 -- Evil (returning series) -- Paramount Plus

June 20 -- Kevin Can F**k Himself (dramedy) -- AMC

June 20 -- Rick and Morty (returning series) -- Adult Swim

Eddie Gamarra has been named VP, literary affairs, for Nickelodeon and Awesomeness, a new post.

Gamarra, previously VP of studio business development, will source, track and evaluate literary material to option and develop into animated and live-action content.

He will  be based in Hollywood and report into Shanna Phelan and Zack Olin, the co-heads of live-action scripted content for Nick, Awesomeness and third-party platforms, and to Ramsey Naito, president of Nickelodeon Animation. 

Before joining Nickelodeon, Gamarra was a college professor and services as a literary manager at The Gotham Group.

B&C has partnered with always-on TV ad measurement and attribution company iSpot.tv to bring you a weekly chart we call Promo Mojo: exclusive data showing the top five TV promos ranked by ad impressions. Our data covers the 7-day period through May 16.

On the strength of nearly 354 million TV ad impressions, an MTV promo for the 2021 MTV Movie & TV Awards tops our chart for the second week in a row.

Hallmark Channel is right behind it in second place, hyping the “spellbinding new season” of fantasy comedy-drama Good Witch. Laughter also gets some love in fourth place, where Nickelodeon promotes a variety of its comedies including Drama Club and Side Hustle.

Rounding out the list are promos for reality fare: TLC takes third for 90 Day Fiancé: Happily Ever After? and HGTV grabs fifth for Home Town Takeover. 

Notably, the 90 Day Fiancé spot has this week’s highest iSpot Attention Index (123), meaning viewers were on average highly likely to watch it all the way through (vs. interrupting it by changing the channel, pulling up the guide, fast-forwarding or turning off the TV).

1) 2021 MTV Movie & TV Awards, MTV

Impressions: 353,765,028

Interruption Rate: 3.01%

Attention Index: 105 (5% fewer interruptions than avg.)

Imp. Types: National 95%, Local 4%, VOD/OTT 1%

In-network Value: $1,709,557

Out-of-network Est. Spend: $393,072

2) Good Witch, Hallmark Channel

Impressions: 212,053,918

Interruption Rate: 6.13%

Attention Index: 102 (2% fewer interruptions than avg.)

Imp. Types: National 98%, Local 2%, VOD/OTT 0%

In-network Value: $1,225,588

Out-of-network Est. Spend: $161,013

3) 90 Day Fiancé: Happily Ever After?, TLC

Impressions: 158,010,558

Interruption Rate: 1.32%

Attention Index: 123 (23% fewer interruptions than avg.)

Imp. Types: National 99%, Local 0%, VOD/OTT 1%

In-network Value: $706,567

Out-of-network Est. Spend: $0.00

4) Various shows, Nickelodeon

Impressions: 136,857,409

Interruption Rate: 2.71%

Attention Index: 112 (12% fewer interruptions than avg.)

Imp. Types: National 99%, Local 0%, VOD/OTT 1%

In-network Value: $877,234

Out-of-network Est. Spend: $0.00

5) Home Town Takeover, HGTV

Impressions: 135,412,462

Interruption Rate: 1.54%

Attention Index: 110 (10% fewer interruptions than avg.)

Imp. Types: National 97%, Local 2%, VOD/OTT 1%

In-network Value: $713,562

Out-of-network Est. Spend: $2,956

*Data provided by iSpot.tv, TV Ad Measurement for Disruptive Brands*

Impressions - The total impressions within all US households including National Linear (Live & Time-shifted), VOD+OTT, and Local.

Attention Score - Measures the propensity of consumers to interrupt an ad play on TV. The higher the score, the more complete views. Actions that interrupt an ad play include changing the channel, pulling up the guide, fast-forwarding or turning off the TV.

Attention Index - Represents the Attention of a specific creative or program placement vs. the average in its respective industry. The average is represented by a score of 100, and the total index range is from 0 through 200. For example, an attention index of 125 means that there are 25% fewer interrupted ad plays compared to the average.

Imp. Types - Impression types tracked include National (Live + Time-shifted), Local, VOD & OTT. See below for further details.

In-network Value - Estimated media value of in-network promos.

Out-of-network Spend - The estimated amount spent on TV airing time for this promo's spots during a given date range.

National: Live - A national promo which was viewed during live linear television broadcast or same day, via DVR or on-demand.

Local - A promo that was aired during a local ad break slot.

VOD - This includes promos that run in on-demand content past three days (i.e. do not contain the linear promo load)

OTT - On-demand streaming content (i.e. Hulu, Roku, Fire TV Stick, Chromecast).

Nickelodeon said its new series, Baby Shark’s Big Show! is generating big ratings two months since its TV premiere on March 26.

The network said Baby Shark is the No. 1 series with kids two to five years old across all of TV, averaging a 1.6 rating and delivering 121,000 preschoolers.

The series is based on the too-catchy song made popular on YouTube. Since it launched in 2015, it amassed more than 5.7 billion views, making it at the time the second most watched video on the platform.

Also Read: Nickelodeon Shows Off Giant Slate of Original Content

On Nickelodeon’s digital platforms, Baby Shark had big boy numbers. It had 10.3 million views on the Nick Jr. YouTube channel in March and posted a 43% increase in April. 

Baby Shark is the top property on Nick Jr. social, up from No. 7 in 2020.

Also Read: Nickelodeon Gives ‘Baby Shark’s Big Week’ TV’s Biggest Promo Push

Baby Shark content is the second fastest growing single IP content on the Nick Jr. YouTube channel, after only PAW Patrol, with an average of 1.4 million organic views and 2.8 million organic minutes watched within the first 30 days.

In VOD, Baby Shark has had 2 million transactions since launch. April’s totals nearly tripled those in March, with more than 875,000 transactions.

Also Read: Nickelodeon Sets Cast for ‘Baby Shark’s Big Show’

Co-produced by Nickelodeon Animation Studio and SmartStudy, the global entertainment company behind the children’s brand Pinkfong, Baby Shark’s Big Show! follows Baby Shark and his best friend William as they have comedic adventures in their community of Carnivore Cove, make new friends and sing original catchy tunes.

Grom Social Enterprises said it acquired kids entertainment company Curiosity Ink Media and will install its president and chief creative officer, former top Nickelodeon exec Russell Hicks, as chief creative officer of Grom.

Financial terms were not disclosed.

Grom has also hired another former Nickelodeon executive, Paul Ward as president of Grom Social and executive VP, social enterprises.

“We expect that the acquisition of Curiosity will strengthen our foothold in original content production and allow us to explore synergies across our animation, social media and educational services while fortifying our mission to serve kids and families in a variety of ways,” said Grom CEO Darren Marks. “We believe the arrival of Russell and Paul to drive Grom’s portfolio, along with the addition of Curiosity Ink Media, will be a watershed moment for us. We are energized and elated by the possible opportunities the addition of Russell, Paul and Curiosity Ink Media represent.”

Hicks launched Curiosity Inc. in 2018 after serving as president of development and production at Nickelodeon. Hicks will continue to oversee Curiosity Ink’s film, television and publishing projects. He will also be president of Grom’s Top Draw Animation subsidiary and work with the studio’s CEO and founder Wayne Dearing and its executive senior VP Stella Dearing.

Over 22 years, Top Draw has produce animated series including Tom & Jerry, The Hollow, Monster Beach and Penn Zero.

Grom expects that by adding Curiosity, it will be able to provide content to subscription video on demand services. 

Ward was executive VP at the Nickelodeon Kids and Family Group until 2013 and has been a brand and public relations consultant since then. Ward will work on building Grom’s emerging COPPA-compliant media platform and spearhead Grom Educational Services, which does web filtering for education, government and private business.

Nickelodeon says just a cable channel is child’s play these days.

At its  upfront Thursday afternoon, the ViacomCBS kids brand described itself as a “multiverse,”  with programming appearing on the new Paramount Plus subscription service, which will have an low-price ad-supported version launching in June, on the free Pluto TV streaming platform and on digital outlets including YouTube.

The event was virtual, and Nick created a presentation that home-bound media buyers could share with their kids. It featured animation and the stars of Nick’s popular series Unfiltered, Side Hustle, Danger Force, Tyler Perry’s Young Dylan, The Loud House and The Barbarian and the Troll, plus a song by Alaya High, headliner of Nick’s new show That Girl Lay Lay.

Nickelodeon showed off its biggest ever slate of original content, including a record amount of animated shows. The increased volume is needed to keep up with kids’ demand for news stuff as well as a mandate to keep its multiple platforms stocked.

Also Read: ‘Baby Shark’ Shorts to Air as Nick Renews Preschool Shows

“We definitely have more mouths to feed, which is great because we know our audience is consuming in many different places,” Nickelodeon president Brian Robbins told Broadcasting + Cable. “The appetite is voracious and you have to constantly feed the beat. And so we are.”

Robbins had been head of Nick for a little more than two years--and that’s about how long it take to get an animated show up and running. “So now you’re seeing the work of the last couple of years come to life.”

Much of the new content brings back Nick favorites--businessmen call it intellectual property--of varying vintages.

Also Read: Nickelodeon Reunites Voice Cast for ‘Rugrats’ Reboot

“We're fortunate enough to have some of the most important franchises in kids’ and families' lives, whether that's SpongeBob, or the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles or Avatar,  which we're bringing back to life,  or the first rendition of Star Trek in animation for kids and families,  or something like Paw Patrol, which will be a theatrical  feature this year and continue as a television series,” he said. “It’s our job to continue to nurture these franchises that have these worlds of great characters and stories to tell.”

Also Read: All of the New Shows Coming to Nickelodeon

At a time when cord-cutting is steadily eating away at ratings, particular for cable channels with children’s programming, the Nickelodeon multiverse creates opportunities for advertisers to reach kids, and their parents, Robbins said. 

“

Our cable channels are still the biggest reach vehicle for this audience without a doubt Robbins said. “We know that kids are consuming content in many different ways today. They still consume an awful lot of content in the traditional lean-back experience.”

But a lot of kids are leaning into other platforms.

“We’re fortunate enough in our ecosystem to have things like Paramount Plus, where you can watch whatever you want on demand, or a service you can carry in your hand like Pluto TV,” he said. “There’s opportunities in all these places for advertisers to join us.”

“The key message here is that we aren’t selling media plans, we are creating content plans for our partners. We are offering true integration and alignment with Nickelodeon’s premium IP across every platform for kids and families,” said ViacomCBS ad sales head Jo Ann Ross, who participated in the presentation.

"Pluto TV Kids is both a marketing vehicle and a distribution platform for partners,” Ross added during the presentation. “Paramount Plus offers vast integration and media opportunities. There’s already a lot of demand for shows like iCarly, which organically lends itself to integrations and innovative messaging. And we’ve made it easier for brands to manage their digital investments across Nickelodeon platforms with EyeQ, our connected video offering."

Kids programming has become important ammunition in the streaming wars. AT&T’s WarnerMedia is boosting production for its Cartoon Network and HBO Max, The Walt Disney Co. is a powerhouse with Disney Plus on top of its cable channels and other like Netflix and YouTube have plenty of content for children of all ages.

“There is a tremendous competition for kids' eyeballs,” Robbins admitted. “The great thing for us at Nickelodeon is that we have the largest share of audience in the ad-supported space by far. We have almost 80% of the ad supported eyeballs, And now with the launch of Paramount plus whoever we're not capturing their we have a really good opportunity to capture them here. So that's really exciting for us.”

With connected TV, there is more co-viewing going on than ever, with parents and kids watching together on the big screen in the living room, a setup that advertisers prize. “It’s very important for us to make shows and films that the whole family can enjoy together,” Robbins said.”

Speaking of the whole family, with everyone stuck at home with their kids and tired of Zoom meetings, Nickelodeon decided to liven up its presentation with a kid-friendly approach.

“Not only have our partners been home for a year on Zoom, but so have their kids right.” Robbins said “This is like a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to invite our partners to come to one of our presentations with their kids. So we said why don't we make a co- viewing experience out of it? And that was the jumping off point. We wanted to have a unique Nickelodeon upfront that gave our partners the chance to experience our brand through their kids eyes.”

It’s hard to tell if kids a trains on different platforms, or blimps floating in air, effectively conveyed a message about the state of modern media to both adults and youngster, but the show has already been a hit in the Robbins household, where his daughter is an important--and tough--focus group.

“I’m not blowing smoke to you right now, but this is exactly what she said to me: ‘This should be on TV.’ She loved it. Drop the mic. We’re done,” he said.

Nickelodeon, with new ViacomCBS platforms to fill and re-energized competition in the kids business, showed advertisers its largest content slate ever Thursday.

New programming includes live action and animated shows, series based on original content and characters as well as programs built on iconic franchises such as SpongeBob, Star Trek, Rugrats and The Smurfs.

Also Read: Nickelodeon Upfront Takes Advertisers to Its Multiverse of Platforms

Beyond the linear Nickelodeon cable channel, new content from the brands will run on the Paramount Plus streaming service, Pluto TV and the Nickelodeon YouTube channel to reach kids in the new ways and new places they consume content.

Nickelodeon is working on live-action shows with Will Packer, Tyler Perry and Mike Mitchell behind the camera and has JoJo Siwa debuting in her first feature-length film. 

The brand has also beefed up its Animation Studio, hiring more than 500 people in the past year and putting 50 projects in development. 

New animated shows for 2021-22 include:

Kamp Koral: SpongeBob’s Under Years (available now on Paramount Plus; premieres September 2021 on Nickelodeon) – This CG-animated prequel marks the first-ever SpongeBob SquarePants spinoff and, follows 10-year-old SpongeBob SquarePants and his pals during summer sleepaway camp. Nick has picked up an additional 13 episodes of the series, bring the total Season 1 order to 26.

Rugrats (premieres spring 2021 on Paramount Plus, followed by a later premiere on Nickelodeon) – This reimagining of Nick’s iconic ‘90s hit will reunite members of the original voice cast and follow the iconic crew of toddlers as their day-to-day lives hat become adventures in their minds.

The Patrick Star Show (premieres July 2021 on Nickelodeon) – The second spinoff from SpongeBob SquarePants is a family sitcom starring Patrick and the rest of his family, as they are constantly disrupted by Patrick’s wild whims and surreal imagination. 

Middlemost Post (premieres July 2021 on Nickelodeon) – This 2D-animated series follows Parker, a former rain cloud; Angus, a brawny mailman; and Russell, their magical pet walrus, as they deliver packages to the unusual inhabitants of Mount Middlemost.

Big Nate (premieres September 2021 on Nickelodeon) – Based on the best-selling children’s books, written and drawn by acclaimed author and cartoonist Lincoln Peirce, this new TV series will feature brand-new original storylines centered on Nate, a precocious 11-year-old boy, and his mischievous shenanigans. 

The Smurfs (premieres October 2021 on Nickelodeon) –  Based on the iconic property and in partnership with LAFIG Belgium and IMPS, The Smurfs is a brand-new original CG-animated TV series packed with humor, heart and high-stakes action.

Star Trek: Prodigy (premieres 2021 on Paramount Plus) – An expansion of the Star Trek Universe, the new CG-animated series follows a motley crew of young aliens who must figure out how to work together while navigating a greater galaxy. Star Trek: Prodigy is from CBS’ Eye Animation Productions, CBS Studios’ new animation arm; Nickelodeon Animation Studio; Secret Hideout; and Roddenberry Entertainment.

Monster High (premieres 2022 on Nickelodeon) – Mattel, Inc. and Nickelodeon are producing a brand-new animated series based on Monster High, the iconic franchise about the children of famous monsters and creatures.

Transformers (premieres 2022 on Nickelodeon) – Based on the iconic global property, the Nickelodeon and Hasbro’s Entertainment One (eOne) co-produced original animated series, will follow a new species of Transformers and the human family that adopts them.

ZJ Sparkleton (working title, premieres 2022 on Nickelodeon) – A buddy comedy, produced by Nelvana, follows quirky 10-year-old vlogger Ruby and her space alien best friend ZJ Sparkleton, 

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (theatrical release in 2023) – Nickelodeon and award-winning Point Grey Pictures’ (Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg and James Weaver) are in production on an all-new CG-animated Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles theatrical motion picture, distributed by Paramount Pictures.

Avatar Studios – Nickelodeon Animation Studio’s new division, helmed by original creators and co-chief creative officers Michael DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko, will create original content spanning animated series and movies based on the beloved world of Avatar: The Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra. The Studio’s output will bow on platforms including Paramount Plus, Nickelodeon’s linear and digital platforms; as well as on third-party platforms and in theaters. The first project, an animated theatrical film, is set to begin production later this year. 

Preschool Shows include: 

Baby Shark’s Big Show! (premieres March 26, 2021 on Nickelodeon) – Based on the pop culture phenomenon, this brand-new series centers on Baby Shark and his best friend William as they make new friends and sing original catchy tunes along the way. Baby Shark’s Big Show! is co-produced by Nickelodeon Animation Studio and SmartStudy, the global entertainment company behind the beloved children’s brand Pinkfong.

PAW Patrol: The Movie (premieres August 20, 2021 in theatres) – A Spin Master Entertainment production in association with Nickelodeon Movies, this animated feature film is based on the award-winning preschool series PAW Patrol and will be distributed by Paramount Pictures. 

The Tiny Chef Show (working title; premieres 2022 on Nickelodeon) – Herbivore social media sensation The Tiny Chef is bringing his culinary adventures to Nickelodeon in a brand-new series, produced in association with Imagine Kids+Family, Tiny Chef Productions, and Nickelodeon Animation Studio.

The Hamster Show (working title; premieres 2022 on Nickelodeon) – This series, produced by Nelvana, follows a motley crew of hamsters, the heroic protectors of their 8-year-old owner Harry, who they mistake as King and beloved ruler of their elaborate colorful-tubed kingdom. 

Nickelodeon is also doubling down on its preschool slate with renewals of Santiago of the Seas for a second season (26 episodes); Blue’s Clues & You! for a fourth season (26 episodes); and PAW Patrol for season nine (26 episodes).

Live Action Shows

Drama Club (available now on Nick App and Nick.com; premieres March 20, 2021 on Nickelodeon) – This mockumentary-style comedy follows a group of middle schoolers as they shine a light on the inner workings of their school’s overlooked drama club.  

The Barbarian and the Troll (premieres April 2, 2021 on Nickelodeon) – This all-new live-action puppet comedy series follows Evan, a bridge troll in search of adventure, and Brendar, a fierce female warrior on a quest to defeat the evil demon who has imprisoned her brother. 

iCarly (premieres summer 2021 on Paramount Plus) – Nickelodeon Studios and Awesomeness have started production on a new series based on the iconic iCarly. The new show picks up nearly 10 years after the original series ended, and finds Carly Shay, the original influencer, and her friends navigating work, love and their family in their twenties.

The J Team (premieres summer 2021) – Starring and executive produced by pop star and social media sensation JoJo Siwa, the 90-minute feature-length film from Awesomeness and Nick’s Live-Action Film Studio follows a young girl who is kicked out of her dance troupe.

That Girl Lay Lay (working title; premieres summer 2021 on Nickelodeon) – Teen sensation and hip-hop artist Alaya “That Girl Lay Lay” High stars in this new comedy series as Lay Lay, an avatar from a personal affirmation app that magically comes to life.That Girl Lay Lay is produced by Will Packer Media with Will Packer serving as executive producer.  

Warped! (premieres fall 2021 on Nickelodeon) – This new buddy comedy, from co-creators Kevin Kopelow & Heath Seifert, follows Milo, the beloved head geek at popular comic book shop Warped!, who forms an unlikely alliance with his new quirky and excitable co-worker Ruby to create the world’s greatest graphic novel.

The Loud House: A Very Loud Christmas!  live-action TV movie (working title; premieres November 2021 on Nickelodeon) – Production is set to begin in April on this original live-action holiday TV movie based on the Emmy Award-winning animated series,  Casting is currently underway, with Wolfgang Schaeffer) tapped to play 11-year-old Lincoln Loud and Jahzir Bruno as Clyde McBride, Lincoln’s best friend. 

Monster High live-action TV movie (premieres 2022 on Nickelodeon) – Mattel, Inc. and Nickelodeon are producing an original live-action TV movie musical based on Monster High, the iconic franchise about the children of famous monsters and creatures.  The movie musical event, which marks the first time Monster High will be brought to life in live action, will be available on Nickelodeon platforms globally next year.

Nickelodeon has also renewed Danger Force for a second season (26 episodes) and Tyler Perry’s Young Dylan for season two (20 episodes). The net has also ordered six additional episodes of buddy comedy Side Hustle, bringing the first season to 26 total episodes.

Nickelodeon said that it has reunited the original voice cast of Rugrats for the new version of the show, set to debut on Paramount Plus this spring.

Reprising their roles are E. G. Daily as Tommy, Nancy Cartwright as Chuckie, Cheryl Chase as Angelica, Cree Summer as Susie and Kath Soucie as the twins Phil and Lil.

The new series, produced by Nickelodeon Animation Studio, features computer-generated animation and follows the toddlers as they explore the world.

Also Read: Nickelodeon Invites Kids to Virtual Upfront on March 18

“Rugrats is one of the most iconic cartoons recognized by fans around the globe, and this original version is one we are taking great care and pride in creating for a brand-new audience,” said Ramsey Naito, president, Nickelodeon Animation. “Having the voice cast behind these special characters come together is one of the essential pieces to making the show recognizable and we can’t wait to watch this talented group bring them to life again.”

The original Rugrats launched in 1991 and ran for nine seasons over 13 years, winning four daytime Emmy Awards and six Kids’ Choice Awards.

The new Rugrats series is based on the series created by Arlene Klasky, Gabor Csupo and Paul Germain. Eryk Casemiro and Kate Boutilier are executive producers and Dave Pressler  and Casey Leonard serve as co-executive producers, with Rachel Lipman as co-producer. Production is overseen by Mollie Freilich, senior manager, current series animation, Nickelodeon. 

Nickelodeon will be holding a virtual upfront event on March 18 and is inviting advertisers and media buyers to bring their kids along.

Also Read: Fox’s May Upfront Event to Include Streamer Tubi

The kids network, part of ViacomCBS, said the upfront is being produced with live action and animation.

It will take “clients and their kids on an entertaining trip through Nick’s drive to expand its reach; power its franchises across platforms; and unleash its largest content slate to date--including more original animation productions than ever in its 40-plus year history--all for a co-viewing audience (So we mean it: Bring Your Kids!),” the network said.

Also Read: ‘Baby Shark’ Shorts to Air as Nick Renews Preschool Shows

The last couple of years, Nickelodeon has been part of Viacom upfront dinners with clients that featured the heads of all of Viacom’s cable networks mingling and laying out plans for the coming year.

Nickelodeon--like other kids programmers--has been losing TV viewers as parents cut the cord and kids turned to streaming for entertainment.

Also Read: Apple Makes Deal For Kids Programming with Skydance

Viacom merged with CBS in December 2019. Since then the company has been using Nickelodeon content on its streaming services, the free ad-supported Pluto TV and the subscription CBS All Access, which will be rebranded as Paramount Plus in March. Paramount Plus will have ad free and ad-supported versions.

Also Read: ‘Sponge on the Run’ and ‘Kamp Koral’ on Paramount Plus at Launch

Other programmers are also using kids content on their streaming platform. Last week, AT&T’s WarnerMedia pitched its plans to ad buyers at an upfront presentation that highlighted shows that will be appearing on Cartoon Network and HBO Max.

Since the COVID-19 pandemic hit last March, networks have had to have upfront presentations online.

Nickelodeon said its Nickelodeon Virtual Upfront Show will “blow up the boundaries of a standard video conference.”

It said the show will feature exclusive screening rooms of full episodes and sneak peeks from new and upcoming Nick series as well as a host of surprises, sweepstakes, photo ops and interactive meets and greets with some of the brand’s animators, artist, talent and characters.

Nickelodeon said it will give viewers a mini-preview of Baby Shark’s Big Show! by airing a block of Baby Shark shorts starting Feb. 26.

The ViacomCBS kids network also said it has given a green light to new seasons of preschool series Santiago of the Seas, Blue’s Clues & You! and PAW Patrol.

The moves follow WarnerMedia’s upfront announcement Wednesday that its Cartoon Network will be pushing into the preschool market with a new block called Cartoonito that will launch with 20 new original series.

Also Read: Disney, ViacomCBS Set Virtual Upfront Events in May

Nickelodeon said it has nine of the top 10 preschool shows on TV.

The Baby Shark Shorts will chum the kiddie waters for the spring premiere of Baby Shark’s Big Show! The series, co-produced by SmartStudy, is based on Pinkfong’s unavoidable Baby Shark Dance, the social media phenomenon.

Santiago of the Seas is getting a second season on Nickelodeon after premiering in October. Nick has ordered 26 half-hour episodes.

Josh and Blue will have a fourth season of Blue’s Clues & You, with 26 half-hour episodes.

PAW Patrol will be hitting season nine. The pups will have new adventures in 26 half-hour episodes.

Nickelodeon will be part of CBS Sports’ Super Bowl festivities, with the kids network airing its own pre-game show that will premiere on Feb. 5 and re-air multiple times over the weekend.

Nickelodeon last month simulcast its own version of an NFL playoff game that also aired on CBS, featuring slime-filled touchdown celebrations and rules explanations by young celebrities including Iain Armitage, star of CBS’ Young Sheldon.

Also Read: CBS Sports, Nickelodeon Pair Up on NFL Playoff Game

The Nick NFL presentation was Nick’s most-watched program among total viewers in nearly four years and was the top-rated show with kids 2-11 and kids 6-11.

Also Read: ViacomCBS Says Super Bowl Ads Are ‘Virtually Sold Out’

Both CBS and Nickelodeon are part of ViacomCBS, which is demonstrating its reach over multiple platforms as part of an effort to maintain its relationship with the NFL and its powerful programming.

The Nickelodeon Super Duper Bowl Pregame Spectacular half-hour show will star Gabrielle Nevaeh Green and Lex Lumpkin. It will feature Super Bowl fun facts, season highlights and predictions in Nick’s style with special guests.

On Super Sunday CBS’s pre-game show, which airs from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. ET, will feature a specially produced segment of Nickelodeon’s game show Unfiltered. In the game, Green and Lumpkin will try to guess the identity of  one of the NFL’s biggest stars playing in the big game, who will be disguised.

A Nick-style highlights package will air as part of CBS’s half-time show. 

“We are thrilled to continue our collaboration with Nickelodeon and build off the success and overwhelming positive response from the production of the NFL Wild Card Game on Nickelodeon,” said Sean McManus, chairman of CBS Sports. “The ‘Nick-ified’ elements in our pregame and halftime programming, along with the second screen digital and social highlights, will be the perfect complement to CBS Sports’ first-class broadcast of Super Bowl LV, allowing us to reach an even wider audience on Super Bowl Sunday across a variety of platforms as we continue to showcase the power of the ViacomCBS family.”

The Super Duper Super Bowl Pregame Spectacular is executive produced by Ashley Kaplan, Luke Wahl and Shawn Robbins, and co-executive produced by Barry Smoler. Jennifer Bryson serves as executive in charge of production.