Aardman & Mattel Team for New Pingu Series

Mattel has partnered with Aardman to develop a new stop-motion and 3D animated series featuring the penguin Pingu.

Inspired by Mattel’s charming and mischievous young penguin that often finds himself in tricky and comical situations, the new TV series will see Pingu tackle life head on alongside his mom, dad, little sister Pinga and friends.

Th new series is being co-developed by Sarah Cox and Alan Thorpe for Aardman and Sidney Clifton, Rob David and Melanie Shannon for Mattel Television Studios.

Pingu was first created in the 1980s and became a global success due to his playful humor and his “Penguinese” language. He has emerged as a fan favorite on social media over the years and sparked viral content and global engagement.

Mattel acquired Pingu through its purchase of HIT Entertainment in 2011.

“When we set out to bring Pingu back, partnering with the top-tier creative team at Aardman was a must,” said Josh Silverman, chief franchise officer of Mattel. “With Aardman’s stop-motion magic and Pingu’s universal charm that has made him a social media hit, we are excited to create fresh snow-filled stories about our favorite penguin that are sure to warm hearts worldwide.”

“At Aardman, we love collaborating with IP that shares our commitment to humor, charm and great storytelling,” added Sarah Cox, chief creative director at Aardman. “From our earliest conversations with Mattel, we felt an immediate and strong connection in our shared love of Pingu, the authentic appeal of the original IP, and comedy that transcends language barriers to speak to audiences everywhere. Aardman and Pingu is such a natural and enticing combination. The charm of the stop-frame animation along with the quirky irreverence and character-driven storytelling aligns perfectly with our creative approach. There are so many stories yet to tell; we can’t wait to get started.”