Spitting Image Gets Season 2 Renewal

The world of television satire has gone into some interesting directions over the past few decades, as countless programs try to find comedy out of unprecedented circumstances. One of the most popular examples of this has been Spitting Image, a British series that lampooned politics and culture to great acclaim across the 1980s and 1990s. The series recently returned for a rebooted iteration through BritBox -- and it looks like it's quickly become a hit as well. Earlier this week, it was announced that the Spitting Image reboot had been renewed for a second season, just days after the season premiere. The new batch of episodes is expected to debut in fall 2021.

The series, which is produced by Avalon, uses more than 100 caricature-like puppets to parody celebrities and public figures. The series' roster of puppet characters include Donald Trump, Barack Obama, Boris Johnson, Beyoncé, Brad Pitt, Gwyneth Paltrow, Joe Biden, Oprah Winfrey, RuPaul, Vladimir Putin, Xi Jinping, and members of the British royal family. According to BritBox, Spitting Image proved to be a huge driver of new subscribers to the service, with numbers reportedly being ten-fold compared to their average daily sign-ups.

"The fantastic response to Spitting Image just goes to show how much the world needs public service satire," Reemah Sakaan, group director of ITV SVOD and chief creative and brand officer of BritBox said in a statement. "Not only can subscribers look forward to another 9 weeks of anarchy but also now another series in 2021."

The original iteration of Spitting Image was one of the most-watched shows of its era, with as many as 15 million people tuning into the series in its heyday. The series was initially canceled in 1996, but plans to reboot or revive the series have been in the works since 2006.

Spitting Image is directed by Andy de Emmony and Steve Connelly. The voice cast of the series includes Billy West, John DiMaggio, Matt Forde, Phil LaMarr, Lewis MacLeod, Jess Robinson, Debra Stephenson, Debra Wilson, Guz Khan, Indira Varma, Lobo Chan, and Jason Forbes.

This news comes at an interesting time for Spitting Image, after the nature of its US broadcast partner was thrown into question. The series is expected to debut on Facebook in the United States, after NBC pulled out of a broadcast deal.

"It's basically quite a difficult show to do in the environment that exists, particularly if you're attacking tall poppies," executive producer Jon Thoday told The Sunday Times. "Inevitably if you attack tall poppies, people get worried."

What do you think of Spitting Image getting renewed for a second season? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below!

h/t: Variety