Seth MacFarlane Pitched Ted As Something Very Different

Ted was originally a family-oriented animated series, according to MacFarlane.

By Nicole Drum

Seth MacFarlane's Ted will debut on Peacock next week with the live-action series serving as a prequel to the 2012 film of the same name as well as its 2015 sequel, Ted 2. However, it turns out that while the foul-mouthed bear is definitely meant as entertainment for adults, the original concept was vastly different. MacFarlane told The Wrap that he originally envisioned Ted as being an animated, family-focused series.

"There was a period during the Time Warner-Turner merger during which the company really had no idea what to do with its creative staff," MacFarlane said. "We were all just sitting around, the whole place was in chaos. They didn't want to fire us all because then they wouldn't have any artists or writers when they did get underway again. So, all we really had to do was pitch an animated show once a week to our bosses. Ted was originally one of these ideas."

MacFarlane explained that the original pitch did have some similarities to what Ted ended up being, with the pitch featuring a teddy bear coming to life after a boy wished on a star. He explained that the original pitch saw the boy growing up to get married and be a father with the bear sticking around as a "leech on the family." He would later use that general framework for the film.

"I never did anything with it," he explained. "And then when it came time for me to do my first movie, it seemed like an idea that had some legs. And since it was a movie instead of a TV show and an ongoing group of characters, it seemed like telling a love story from start to finish and using that framework was maybe a better way to go. So, the dad became a single guy trying to get his relationship back together."

What Is the Ted Television Series About?

Here's how Peacock describes Ted: "In this comedic prequel event series to the Ted films, it's 1993, and Ted the bear's (Seth MacFarlane) moment of fame has passed. He's now living back home in Framingham, Massachusetts with his best friend, 16-year-old John Bennett (Max Burkholder), along with John's parents, Matty and Susan (Scott Grimes and Alanna Ubach) and cousin Blaire (Giorgia Whigham). Ted may be a lousy influence on John, but at the end of the day, he's a loyal pal who's always willing to go out on a limb for friendship." The series stars Max Burkholder along with Alanna Ubach, Scott Grimes, and Giorgia Whigham.

"Each generation develops its own unique artistic style, its own way of seeing the world. In the twenties, it was the subversive musical phrasings of jazz. In the fifties, it was the bold brushwork of the abstract expressionist. Our generation's unique art is streaming content based on previously successful intellectual property. In that proud tradition, we humbly give you Ted," MacFarlane and fellow co-showrunners Paul Corrigan and Brad Walsh previously said.

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"Our series is a prequel to the Ted movies. It takes place in the nineties but is based on the timeless truth that being sixteen sucks. The only thing that makes it tolerable is going through it with a friend, even if that friend is a has-been magical teddy bear with a foul mouth and proclivity for drug use. The three of us were teenagers in the nineties and grew up in and around Boston, where the show takes place, so many of these stories are personal for us. We were able to put the characters through some of the same indignities and milestones we experienced back then. Also, we made stuff up (it's a lot of pages to fill and real life is mostly boring)."

Ted debuts Thursday, January 11th on Peacock.

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