Netflix Rebooting Care Bears With New Animated Series
Netflix continues to stock up on nostalgia-laden fare, this time with a reboot of the iconic Care Bears franchise.
The animated Care Bears and Cousins is expected to premiere in 2016, The Hollywood Reporter has confirmed. Netflix chief content officer Ted Sarandos announced the revival in an interview with CNN Money, explaining that the streamer has gravitated toward well-known children’s franchises because they are “trusted brands.”
The show is part of Netflix’s growing slate of children’s series. Earlier this month Netflix announced a King Kong animated series and movie that will debut worldwide in 2016. The company has also ordered Dinotrux, a DreamWorks Animation book adaptation set to air in 2015, and The Magic School Bus 360˚, a series based on the 1990s children’s classic.
The Care Bears were created by American Greetings in the 1980s and became a beloved franchise with several movies, TV shows and plush toys. Originally there were 10 bears each with a unique color and insignia — for example, Birthday Bear is yellow with a cupcake symbol and Good Luck Bear is green with a four-leaf clover mark — but the franchise has since expanded to include additional bears and characters such as the Care Bear Cousins.
American Greetings rebooted the brand in 2012 for Care Bears: Welcome to Care-a-lot, a CGI animated adventure series that aired on Hub Network. Another series, Care Bears: Adventures in Care-a-lot, aired on CBS from 2007 to 2008.
