It isn’t a Kindergarten Cop spinoff, no matter how much the audience might want it to be. Rather, Arnold Schwarzenegger’s new animated series Superhero Kindergarten is a property developed by Stan Lee. But it’s no coincidence that the former California governor and frequent Terminator franchise actor is back in elementary school; according to Schwarzenegger, Lee came up with the idea for Superhero Kindergarten after being spurred on by Arnold himself saying that he would like to do a sequel to Kindergarten Cop, his 1990 comedy about an undercover police officer who pretends to be a kindergarten teacher to catch some bad guys.
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As an unofficial sequel, you don’t get much better than taking the idea and upgrading it from police to superheroes. Of course, there already has been a Kindergarten Cop sequel, but not with Schwarzenegger.
“Stan and I were talking about creating some kind of superhero character for me and doing an animated show. He said to me, ‘what is your biggest wish?’ And I said, ‘to do a sequel to Kindergarten Cop,’” Schwarzenegger revealed during an appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live this week, saying that after Lee repeated the statement back to him, the longtime comics editor and publisher stared off into space and came back with, “we should call it Superhero Kindergarten.“
In Superhero Kindergarten, Schwarzenegger plays the role of a retired superhero who becomes a teacher for super-powered kids, training them to be the heroes of tomorrow.
“Typically, a new children’s series launch takes time to gain traction among audiences; however, we have been blown away by the extraordinary and immediate viewership and positive feedback with over two million views in just the first weekend!” said Andy Heyward, Chairman & CEO of Genius Brands. “This breaks every record for us on the channel and goes beyond our wildest expectation for the series weekend debut. In the new world of streaming media, it’s hard to compare apples to oranges, but if Superhero Kindergarten were a feature movie, we would be doing cartwheels with this ‘opening weekend ‘box office.’ We know as we roll out new episodes every Friday on Kartoon Channel!, this will only continue to build. Arnold has been incredible with his passion and dedication to the development and production of the series. Working closely with the iconic comedy director John Landis, Arnold enriched every single line reading. The two of them together were magic in the recording booth, and never settled for anything less than excellence. The show is full of winks at the camera and gems, which adults will devour as much as kids. We know young audiences and their parents will continue to discover this special series in the months and years to come.”
Stan Lee’s Superhero Kindergarten is geared towards kids and families and focuses on the adventures of six unique kids who are learning to master their super skills, along with their ABCs. With the help of their teacher Arnold Armstrong (AKA ‘Captain Fantastic’, the greatest superhero to ever live!).
It all began five years ago when Arnold Armstrong faced off in a final fight against his nemesis, the evil Dr. Superior, that left him powerless. Little did anyone know that during the fight, super-energy particles rained down on a group of unsuspecting toddlers. Now, those toddlers are kindergarten students at Greenville Elementary School who, with the help of Arnold Armstrong, must learn to control their powers as they go on super adventures! Arnold Armstrong’s mission: to train these kids to use their super-powers safely without revealing their identities. They learn the values of teamwork, health, diversity and anti-bullying while also protecting their town from rivals, and the nefarious Dr. Superior who has returned as Headmaster Danforth of the Academy for Superior Children across town.
The series airs on Saturdays on Kartoon Channel.
