Netflix is going after the kid demo again with “Skylanders Academy,” its first original series based on a video game, from Activision Blizzard.
The 13-episode series bowed Friday on Netflix worldwide. Based on Activision Blizzard’s $3 billion Skylanders toys-to-life line, season 1 of “Skylanders Academy” will be followed by a second season slated to debut on Netflix in late 2017.
“Skylanders Academy” is the first project from Activision Blizzard Studios, led by co-presidents Stacey Sher and Nick van Dyk. The game publisher formed the studio division last fall, with a movie series based on “Call of Duty” also in the works.
The show follows the adventures of Spyro, Eruptor, Stealth Elf, Jet-Vac and Pop Fizz as they travel the vast Skylands universe, protecting it from evildoers. As darkness begins to threaten peace in the Skylands, Master Eon is forced to assemble a ragtag group of heroes to protect the universe from evil-doers Kaos and the Doom Raiders. Using their unique blend of personalities and super powers, Spyro and his fellow Skylanders are called upon to set aside egos as they come together to maintain harmony and balance in the land.
Skylanders, created by Toys For Bob, was first introduced in 2011 and has since sold more than 250 million toys. Earlier this month Activision announced “Skylanders Imaginators,” a game that lets kids create their own Skylanders characters and bring them to life. (Separately, Disney earlier this year announced that it was killing off the Infinity toys-to-life line.)
“Skylanders Academy” is led by showrunner Eric Rogers (“Futurama”) and features the voices of Justin Long (“DodgeBall: A True Underdog Story”) as Spyro; Ashley Tisdale (“High School Musical”) as Stealth Elf; Jonathan Banks (“Breaking Bad”) as Eruptor; and Norm Macdonald (“Saturday Night Live”) as Glumshanks.
Additional voice talent includes Susan Sarandon, Daniel Wu, Bobcat Goldthwait, The Diamond Minecart, Parker Posey, James Hetfield, Catherine O’Hara, Chris Diamantopoulos and Harland Williams. The series features the exclusive song “Harmony” (the Skylanders Academy theme) produced and performed by Timbaland, featuring Dalton Diehl.
“Skylanders Academy” is executive produced by Sher and van Dyk along with Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick and Sander Schwartz, producer of animated hits including “The Batman” and “The Aquabats! Super Show!” The series is animated by France’s TeamTO.
