Spin Master, Netflix Bet on ‘Unicorn Academy’ Kids’ Adventure Series Through 2025

variety.com:

Brian Steinberg Senior TV Editor Spin Master, the large toy, game and kids-TV conglomerate has helped build franchises out of concepts like “PAW Patrol” and “Bakugan Battle Brawlers.’ Now the company thinks it can do the same with a group of young girls who have a knack for riding unicorns.

The company and Netflix plan to launch a new fantasy-adventure series, “Unicorn Academy.” Based on a series of books by author Julie Sykes, the animated series will launch with a 72-minute movie premiere and subsequent episodes, all slated for release this fall, followed by a toy line, digital game and licensed consumer product rollout in 2024.

Spin Master Entertainment has content planned through 2025, with more than 250 minutes of short and long-form features produced to date including original shorts and music videos. “This is the biggest animated series we’ve ever made, for sure,” says Jennifer Dodge, Spin Master’s president of entertainment, in an interview.

The executives says the company felt the “Unicorn Academy” series would play well to young girls over the age of six, but also have appeal for younger children and even pre-teens and teens, depending on how they find out about the franchise. “From a production standpoint, it’s certainly our largest and most ambitious series to date,” she says. “We are really setting out to create something big and special, something that is going to last for a long time.” The series follows the character Sophia and the rest of the freshman class of the Unicorn Academy boarding school.