When Napoleon Dynamite came out in 2004, it really changed the landscape of independent film. Made for just around $400,000 by director Jared Hess, the movie broke from typical storytelling by focusing on the everyday, often awkward, life of a high schooler in Preston, Idaho. Despite its small budget, Napoleon Dynamite became a huge success, earning over $46 million and becoming a beloved cult classic. Memorable moments, like the “Vote for Pedro” campaign and the iconic dance scene, became ingrained in pop culture. However, instead of launching a big movie franchise, the only official follow-up to Napoleon Dynamite was a short-lived animated TV show that most people have forgotten.
On January 15, 2012, Fox launched an animated series based on the world of Napoleon Dynamite. The show was created with the original filmmakers, Jared and Jerusha Hess, and Mike Scully, a longtime producer of The Simpsons. They chose animation to keep the characters looking like teenagers and to allow for more imaginative and outlandish stories than they could have filmed with a limited budget. A big draw for fans was the return of the original cast to voice their characters, including Efren Ramirez as Pedro, Tina Majorino as Deb, Jon Gries as Uncle Rico, Aaron Ruell as Kip, Diedrich Bader as Rex, and Sandy Martin as Grandma. Unfortunately, the series only lasted one season, with just six half-hour episodes.
Is the Napoleon Dynamite Animated TV Show Good?
As a big fan of Napoleon Dynamite, I was really excited when they made a TV series. The creators tried to keep that same awkward, deadpan humor and focus on the little things that made the movie so special. Sadly, it just didn’t work out. The first episode, “Thunderbolt,” actually did really well, bringing in 9.5 million viewers thanks to being shown right after a big NFL playoff game – it was Fox’s highest-rated scripted debut that season! But people quickly lost interest. Ratings dropped almost 25% by the second episode, and by the time the last one aired on March 4, 2012, only around 4.05 million people were still watching. That steep decline is why Fox ended up canceling it, which was a bummer.
The show received mostly mixed reviews. It currently has a score of 46 on Metacritic and a 32% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Some fans enjoyed how the series expanded the world of the original movie, but others felt the quicker pace of a sitcom didn’t fit the deliberately awkward style of the 2004 film. Because eight years had passed since the movie’s release, the show also struggled to gain traction with a new audience, as the original film’s popularity had already faded.
Okay, so I was really bummed when the Napoleon Dynamite animated series disappeared from Hulu and Disney+. It’s just frustrating how easily shows can vanish in the streaming world! I loved that show, and it’s a shame Disney pulled it as part of those cost-cutting moves last year. The original movie is a classic, so you’d think they’d keep the series available. Now, finding it is tough – there was a DVD release a while back, but those are getting rare and pricey. It feels like a real letdown that it’s so hard to watch, especially since it brought all the original cast back together for one last adventure with Preston!
Still want to see a live-action sequel to Napoleon Dynamite? Share your thoughts in the comments and join the discussion on the ComicBook Forum!
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2026-01-15 18:13