Remember that time when Nickelodeon was reportedly looking to revive some of its classic programmes such as “Hey Arnold!” and “Rugrats” back to its slate?
Well, the plan turns out well because according to Variety, Arnold the football-headed kid and his band of city-dwelling misfit friends will return to TV in the form of TV movie.
Fans of the show would know that Arnold lives with his paternal grandparents Phil and Gertrude in a place called Sunset Arms in the city of Hillwood. The character is normally accompanied by his best friend Gerald. He often gets bullied by Helga Pataki, who secretly admired him from afar.
As for the TV movie version of “Hey Arnold!“, it will reportedly feature a storyline that resolves the unanswered mysteries from the series, including the whereabouts of Arnold’s parents who are long missing from the TV programme.
In an interview with Variety, Nickelodeon’s president of content and development Russel Hicks said:
Kids who grew up on these characters are now of the age that they are having kids and families themselves.
“Our library has come to fruition and it’s time for it to start coming back to life“, he added.
Hicks and Chris Viscardi, senior vice president of content development for the franchise properties, said their goal isn’t trying to bring older millennials back as viewers. Instead, they aim to encourage family viewing and target the current audiences.
“Hey Arnold!” creator Craig Bartlett will be writing and executive producing the new “Arnold” movie. He pitched a different idea and talked to Nickolodeon executives about how the characters continued to gain mentions in online forums, citing fan art and fan fiction to short films on YouTube.
Viscardi said they are currently “reaching out to other creators of older shows” as he hopes to “work with them” or “partner them with younger creatives who grew up on their programs”.
So, aren’t you excited about this? We definitely are 😉
