The Venture Bros., Aqua Teen Hunger Force, and Metalocalypse are all getting follow-up movies
TV Features The Venture Bros.
In news that we have no choice to respond to but with the heartiest “GO TEAM VENTURE!” imaginable, Adult Swim has announced today that it’s bringing back three of its classic animated series, The Venture Bros., Aqua Teen Hunger Force, and Metalocalypse, for follow-up movies. The decision, announced this afternoon by Adult Swim president Michael Ouweleen, will presumably allow each series to get some kind of proper send-off at last—or, in the case of Aqua Teen, to do a few more horrible things to Carl.
Fans of these shows will know that neither the creators of The Venture Bros. or Metalocalypse (Jackson Publick and Doc Hammer on the one hand, Brendan Small and Tommy Blacha on the other) were exactly overjoyed with how their shows ended their tenures on Adult Swim. Small launched a social media campaign to try to save his show back in 2015, collecting nearly 100,000 signatures calling for a follow-up to 2013's The Doomstar Requiem—but Adult Swim didn’t bite. Publick, meanwhile, announced the cancellation of The Venture Bros. last year by noting that the news came down just as he and Hammer were writing its 8th season, which would presumably have addressed many of the big mysteries lobbed at its audience in the conclusion of its 7th.
But enough about the dark days: New content is a-comin’! Adult Swim and parent company Warner Media didn’t announce release dates for any of the movies, but did confirm the roll-out structure: Each film will debut on home video and video-on-demand for 90 days, then make their way over to HBO Max and Adult Swim. We’ve also got loose plot synopses for each project, which you can read below:
Metalocalypse
The power-hungry TRIBUNAL unveils their secret and deadly “Falconback Project” as the world grows in embattled chaos and the menacing Doomstar breaches the Earth’s atmosphere while the mysterious and twisted dissent of a band member threatens the future of Dethklok. Picking up directly after the heroic rescue of Toki Wartooth: Can Dethklok choose between their egos and the greater good of the world to embark on a gauntlet of dangers that will try their very souls and finally write the song that will be their salvation? The new movie is created by Brendon Small and Tommy Blancha. The movie soundtrack will be released on WaterTower Music.
The Venture Bros.
Doc’s latest invention will either bankrupt the Ventures or launch them to new heights, as Hank searches for himself, Dean searches for Hank, The Monarch searches for answers, and a mysterious woman from their pasts threatens to bring their entire world crashing down on them. The Venture Bros. is created, written and executive produced by Jackson Publick and Doc Hammer.
Aqua Teen Hunger Force
A continuation of the hit animated series, fans will find out what happens next with Frylock, Meatwad and Master Shake, who consider themselves crime fighters, but the truth is they never fight crime. Aqua Teen Hunger Force is created by Matt Maiellaro and Dave Willis and follows the strange everyday lives of three human-sized food products living in New Jersey.
(We do love that not even the Aqua Teen press copy seems to know how to describe Aqua Teen Hunger Force, a problem that also impacted the first Aqua Teen movie back in 2007.)
125 Comments
Ok that’s awesome news!
The ATHF “synopsis” has the requisite dearth of anything resembling an actual plot and I am HERE for it.
I bought a t-shirt commemorating the ‘bomb scare’ from the first film, looks like it’s time to dig that bad boy out.
It’s more or less a copy and paste of the synopsis used to sell the series to CN in the first place, even though they were only “detectives” for about 2 episodes.
I didn’t care much either way about the others but I’ll definitely be watching new ATHF. Somehow that ridiculous show remains one of the funniest things I’ve ever seen. The Mooninites better make an appearance.
It’s almost perfectly distilled absurdist comedy.
I can’t even explain to my employees why I’m looking at my phone trying not to laugh. “Well, I’m remembering this show where this New Jersey sleazeball got a broomstick shoved so far up his ass he became a Cone head.” And the funny part is that it happened several times, he was drugged to forget and the footage never got used anyway.
Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Flargan & Dingle…
Alright, fine! Fuck it! When I say your dumb name, stand up, then drop to your knees and say “Here I am, rock you like a hurricane!”
Flargan and WHAT?
The Love Mummy ! “ Why do you think your place was so cheap ? “. 🙂
Eh, the first Aqua Teen movie really wore out its welcome, and I’m not confident modern AS has improved enough to rectify that.
They started to lose me with that Boost Mobile episode.
The show is great. It’s perfect in it’s short, tv format. Did NOT work as a full-length movie, at all.
felt like the most dangerous, craziest shit that could ever possibly be on tv.
I’d love a billywitchdoctordotcom cameo, but due to COVID restrictions he’s stuck.In one convenient location.In Africa.
I haven’t watched ATHF in over a decade and I find it hilarious that I still get this reference and laughed out loud. I also have no real interest in revisiting the show, as I feel I’ve moved on in my comedic leanings.
I know you’re just saying that to feel like an adult, but, secretly, deep down, you’re as excited as a boy on Christmas morning just knowing that your parents bought you that NES with Zelda. Come on, admit it! 🙂
Rise Chicken
No! Shhh…he is legend.
Shh! He is legend.
The first few seasons of ATHF are some of my favorite TV ever, and my wife and I still quote it in our daily lives. I hope having a couple years off refreshed Matt and Dave, because it got weaker and weaker as time went on. I re-watched early seasons dozens of times, but I don’t think I have ever felt the desire to re-watch any of the episodes after they started changing the title/theme song.
I’m with you. I almost cried from laughing the first time I saw Kidney Car. But when the show just became “let’s see how much fucked up stuff we can do to Carl” it got really uninteresting and a lot less funny. It always felt to me like one of those situations where the show was great when Matt and Dave had to get creative to work within Cartoon Network’s boundaries, but then they seemingly hit a point where the show was popular enough they could do whatever they wanted. And apparently they really wanted to mutilate Carl’s private parts.
While I mostly agree, here is where I have to mention that my wife has a Hand Banana tattoo… So we were definitely amused by the awful things happening to Carl for a while, but the seasons after the one with Hand Banana are when we started to fall off and don’t re-watch any of them.
I just find Dana Snyder’s voice hilarious. He and HJB are my 2 favorite voice artists.
Harah Jessica Barker?(I know who you’re referring to, but I just couldn’t help myself…)
He played a relative of Jabba the Hutt on the Lego Star Wars show.Also a demon in the last season of “Your Pretty Face is Going to Hell,” also co-created by Dave Willis.
Wasn’t he in all the episodes of Hell? He’s also in that Netflix show Paradise PD playing a few characters. But Master Shake will be who I always know him as.
According to IMDB only 1 and 2, but I remember him for sure being in season 4.
Well, he’s funny as hell in every episode he’s in, but I’m having a devil of a time finding him in every episode. My face is red with embarrassment.
Hell in some episodes Henry Zebrowski doesn’t even show up till half way through and he’s the main character!
Whenever Dana Snyder shows up in a guest spot on a cartoon I’m always delighted.
I re-watched the whole show after it came on HBO Max. I’m happy to report that my sense of humor hasn’t matured at all.
Aren’t the Mooninites still in jail for trying to blow up Boston?
I’m the exact opposite, thrilled that Metalocalypse and Venture Bros will get something approaching proper endings and kinda indifferent toward ATHF. They already had a movie (which I recall not being overly impressed by – it’s best in 10 minute chunks) and they didn’t have the rug yanked out from under them by cancellation like the other two. I’ll still check it out, but it’s a distant third of this group IMO.
I want to see Dr. Weird. & what fresh atrocities can happen to Carl’s car.
this circle here, that’s a uterus.
that’s what it looks like?up close, yes. this is a lifelike drawing of the uterus. see, the guy takes the car after his job to pick up the uterus at her house…because she doesn’t work unless she’s sweeping up something.and where do they go?all the way… to a hotel… which definitely has cable
Now starting a pool on what decade the VB movie will actually come out.
Why? You won’t live long enough to verify the results.
Asking for the grandchildren, obviously.
It’s like one of those big starships that generations of people live on until they finally reach a new planet. We’ll never get there, but we’re doing this for our great-grandchildren.
In an alternate universe, Venture Brothers is probably as well – known as DC or Disney / Marvel.
I’ll venture a guess.(I won’t venture a guess, I just wanted to make that pun.)
Before a new HunterxHunter chapter is released most likely.
This is sad but true. Common sense would say that Doc and Jackson will just condense the season 8 episodes, but we all know that’s just silly. Going with Price is Right rules, I’m going with 2023.
Even if they’re just going to condense season 8’s plot, it would probably require a full rewrite to make it all work.
Future AVC headline: Venture Bros movie delayed 2 years.2 years later headline: Venture Bros movie delayed further
They were already a huge way into production for Season 8, so I assume they need to cut, rather than build.
Given that they just started, and knowing the creative discipline of the creators, I’d say:Metalocalypse: By next year:
Venture Bros: Around 2030
Aqua Teen Hunger Force: Already storyboarded on an Arby’s Napkin. Premieres next Tuesday.
Grant Morrison wanted to do live – action Venture Brothers, but I think that fell by the wayside in favor of the 2 seasons of HAPPY & Doom Patrol.
Fuck. Yes.
Ehh, as much as I love ATHF, I am not hyped about the movie. The second half of the show was very up and down and the first movie really, really dragged after the first act. That show does not work well in longer formats.If only we could have gotten a Space Ghost movie. Shame we never can.
Yeah, I’d love to see some one-offs with him and Brak, but it wouldn’t be the same to recast Zorak/Moltar
ATHF already got a movie, or am I the only one who remembers Colon Movie Film for Theaters?
How could I forget the movie that gave us this?
Has it really been that long since Doomstar Requiem? Wow
So glad to see the Venture Bros news, the series deserved a much better ending than the last episode of S07, not that that episode was supposed to bring an end to the series. I’m positive Doc & Jackson will tie it up well. Long live The Monarch!
I’m definitely excited for Venture Bros. Sidenote: if you’re looking for a show with the Venture Bros flavor, I highly recommend Harley Quinn on HBO Max. For instance, the Legion of Doom is basically the Guild of Calamitous Intent. The show’s funny has hell, and nothing brings me joy like Ron Funches voicing King Shark.
Just finished Harley Quinn this past week…definitely worth checking-out, if not for Bane alone.
Funches as King Shark is the most perfect casting ever…to the extent that I wish James Gunn had leaned into it and used him for Suicide Squad. Bane is also just an endless joy to behold, but I really feel like the breakout delight of HQ season two was clearly lawyer Man-Bat….so much perfect crammed into just a couple short scenes. God I love that show. Glad I’m not alone in thinking it makes for a great Venture Bros. stand in until Warner finally just leaves Doc and Jackson alone to make that amazing fever dream of a show forever…or at least for one more movie.
“ Lawyer Bat, Attorney At Law “. Ha – Ha !
I laugh like an absolute idiot whenever Bane says pretty much anything.
First time I showed Harley Quinn to my wife, she said “This is just Venture Bros. with DC characters.”And she was exactly right, in the best possible way.
Syfy Channel showed most of the 1st season. It was one of their better decisions. One of the few reasons that I haven’t stopped watching them.
And its a dang shame that AV Club couldn’t be bothered to do episode recaps of it.
You have a bunch of grievances and sadness don’t you? It’s a shame. It’s like you’re terribly condescending to overcompensate. Hm.
It fascinated me that VB sort of satirized comic books and other retro entertainment to create an irreverent-yet-sincere take on that world, and than HQ was clearly inspired by VB to create its own irreverent-yet-sincere world.
Loved the take on Clayface. He was more Velveeta than Play-doh.
Really? I’m a HUGE Venture Bros fan but I’m not into “Spandex Movies” and the sort. I’ll put it this way: I’ll watch Teen Titans Go! before I watch a Snyder super hero film or even much of the MCU.But if Harley Quinn has that sort of VB vibe, I’ll absolutely give it a shot. Is there an awesome equivalent of this gentleman?
Harley Quinn has a TON of VB influence, they even referred to “henching” a few times. I love it.
Yeah, I seem to remember one scene where she refers to them as “henches,” to whit one responds, “But what if I identify as goon?”
SOLD.
I’m super happy the Venture bros are getting a film and I kind of hope how this is how it goes forward with a movie a year for the next few years if they’re successful. Less pressure to write 8-12 episodes every 2-3 years. Just give me what amounts to 4 episodes a year in a tight writing package and I’ll be happy. I will absolutely watch Metalocalypse end as well, finally….ATHF already ended and their movie wasn’t good. I’m not getting into them again, I’ll watch the occasional rerun…Also, apparently squidbillies made like 6 more seasons when I wasn’t paying attention at all…have they made any since Unknown Hinson admitted to being a closet racist?
I’m super happy the Venture bros are getting a film and I kind of hope how this is how it goes forward with a movie a year for the next few years if they’re successful. Less pressure to write 8-12 episodes every 2-3 years. Just give me what amounts to 4 episodes a year in a tight writing package and I’ll be happy.I didn’t think of that but honestly, yeah, I could go with that. Operation PROM and All This and Gargantua-2 proved they can do non-stop jokes and non-stop plot very well – both were tight packages that managed to wrap a bunch of story neatly while introducing new stuff, while also being funny as fuck.
Yeah, in the case of VB I honestly think this is a test for them. Can they keep a movie slick and fun for roughly 4 episodes and if so they’ll get to keep making more. I feel Metalocalypse is just them getting what the fans and creators wanted. I really felt like VB was hitting their stride finally in the last 2 seasons. Those early seasons now are almost unwatchable with how cruel doc was and just how it was such a heavy parody without weight or direction. Now if it’s just a movie I’ll happily dig in every 18 months to catch it. Give me a trilogy to properly wrap up the universe and I’ll be giddy.
This is easily the best news of the year so far for me, I still think The Venture Brothers is the best cartoon if not show ever made.
Not that I won’t watch new Aqua Teen content, but I actually kinda loved how the series ended. The fake-out last episode, then the the Highlander episode that shows Frylock serving life in prison and Meatwad raising a family and going back to visit his childhood home.
Excellent news. It sucked that they cancelled Venture Bros right at a point where so many plot details had become interesting and were just left dangling.
I’m an 100% down for more Venture Bros. Aqua Teen is good too, even if the actual movie they did is…eh. Never watched Metalocolypse.
I would say your enjoyment of Metalocalypse depends on whether you like heavy metal or not. You don’t need to be really into the genre, but if the music puts you off this show will as well.
GO TEAM VENTURE! Fuckin’ A. I would rather have more seasons, dammit, but I’m still excited.Hopefully Brendon wraps up Metalocalypse with this movie. Don’t pull a Shenmue, man, wrap it up while you have the chance!ATHF in its prime was the best [adult swim] had to offer. That prime was its first few years, and I hope having the last few years away from the show refreshed Matt and Dave, because I grew bored with the show when they started to seem to be bored with it (changing title/theme song every season).
I am absolutely here for a conclusion to Metalocalypse!!!
Shoot Metalocalypse straight into my veins!
Brock Samson’s ‘69 Charger shall ride again–YEE-HAH!
First off, the hell with Adult Swim, Comcast changed the packages here so it is on a higher tier, so no more AS for me.ATHF had a movie already, got the DVD, but bring it.The other two, yes, yes and yes for those movies. I still wish they got picked up by another channel instead of having huge amounts of time between seasons while Adult Swim was going shitty Tim and Eric live action crap that really killed off all the cartoons. Hopefully we can order DVD’s and a middle finger to Adult Swim for screwing us out of such great shows.
I do think the fact that so many of us are enthusiastic about AS going back to the well of these three series….probably does not speak well about…pretty much anything they’ve put on the air since.(Birdgirl is a possible exception, but that’s also a spin-off of one of the original AS series.)
I’ve only watched the first two episodes, but I cannot get into Birdgirl at all. Yea, it is a spinoff of Harvey Birdman, but in practice only the title character is remotely similar. The lack of HB characters really detracts from the show and the new characters are all pretty bad, with the possible exception of the dog.
Modern AS leans way, way, way, way, way too much on “Hur, it’s funny because it’s not funny, so that makes it funny, hur – pass the bong, man” “humour”.Just random shapes and noises and colours while you fire up your fifth joint of the afternoon.
They 100% would’ve gone back to the Space Ghost well if not for the death of C. Martin Croker
I’m a bit mad because the Venture Bros. movie comes on the heels of AS canceling it when a) the show was seemingly moving towards wrapping up its last mysteries, b) another season was reportedly in the can, c) Doc Hammer couldn’t work on it initially because he didn’t know if he’s ever gonna walk again and d) it mostly got fucked because of some old deals with Hulu, so them going “yaay here’s a movie, we saved it!” feels condescending as fuck.On the other hand, GO TEAM VENTURE HOLY SHIT A MOVIE FUUUUUUUCKI hope it’s not the end of the VB universe and that the movie will lead into a final season or a mini-series or a new show, but I’m happy we’re getting that damn movie at least.
It seems really unlikely to me that another season was actually “in the can”. All I had ready said that they had already started writing it, which given their normal rate of work I would guess means they were… 10%? 15%? of the way into breaking the scripts. But did anything indicate that any animation work was finished?
No, you’re right, I was worked up and went too far with that particular assessment.Still: I believe it was a Dick Move.
Oh yeah, definitely a dick move.
Going by the rumors there were two reasons the show was cancelled.1) The absurd amount of time between seasons. Mike Lazzo was able to to shield the show from the execs, but he retired. And the show never got anywhere near as successful as Rick & Morty to justify it.2) Any and all future seasons would be going to Hulu, rather than HBO Max. If a new project, such as a movie, were made, that means Hulu wouldn’t get it.
If a “movie” is the loophole it took for more Venture Bros., that’s a-okay with me. The handful of times VB has gone with a longer narrative its paid off tremendously, so I don’t suspect this will be as padded and messy as the Futurama movies often were (not to mention how hindered they were by the mandate that each 22 minute chunk had to more or less stand on its own). I imagine Publick and Hammer will be much freer with how they structure their narrative, and it’s not like your average Venture Bros. ep is ever lacking for ideas.
If Grant Morrison finds time to make his live – action version of VB, hang on to something. It’s going to be a wild ride ( after seeing clips of Doom Patrol ) !
I mean VB could have satisfyingly ended with “All That and Gargantua-2″ so I think the show will be able to wrap up with the movie. I wish there was more but I don’t worry that they won’t be able to put together a good ending.
This, at the very least, portends to give us a mama Venture reveal (for real this time).And I’m betting that said reveal will be a gloriously on-brand letdown. “What, she was a cute waitress in Scranton! What the hell ELSE was I gonna do in Scranton for three hours, eat scrapple?”
I am super stoked for more Metalocalypse!Though, now I wonder if Brendon is going to do things differently storywise, as when it seemed that AS wouldn’t let him finish the story, he wrapped it up in his solo project album “Galaktikon II: Become the Storm”. With people close to the project admitting it was a “Dethklok Album”.The musicians on this album are the same as the members of Dethklok. Brendon Small had stated that Adult Swim has restricted his ability to use the Dethklok name in his music endeavors. Gene Hoglan said in an interview that, “It’s a Dethklok album, it just can’t be called Dethklok ‘cause of rights. I will say this if you love Dethklok, you will love this record. The lyrics, the music and everything is Dethklok styled”.Fans even decoded the storyline, to wrap up where Doomstar left off.
A good rundown:https://www.reddit.com/r/Metalocalypse/comments/7u5q58/yes_im_pretty_sure_galaktikon_ii_is_the_finale/
Yeah, I am 100% on board for a new ATHF movie. I could be misremembering the last few seasons of the show, but didn’t both they and Carl move to Seattle and end up being neighbors again?
I am a Venture Diehard and so happy they are getting a movie……but Brendan finishing Metalocalpyse feels personal and amazing and I had completely given up hope that it was ever going to happen!
Is it technically ironic that a network that used the power of syndication to prove to other networks certain shows shouldn’t have been cancelled are now cancelling a great deal of their own lineup?
Aqua Teen Hunger Force Colon Movie Film For Theaters is still one of my fondest filmgoing experiences. It’s a trainwreck of a movie, but I wouldn’t expect anything less and it used to be my “depressed and watching way too often in the dark” movie. Glad Matt and Dave get to do it again. And that’s not to say anything about how thrilled I am for the other two films.
I unironically love how Venture and Metalocalypse get plot-specific descriptions, and meanwhile ATHF’s is just “um, we’re making some more of this thing, I guess.”
VB got cancelled during S8 planning / writing so guessing they already knew what story was supposed to be.
I think both had the endings pretty much mapped out, it was just a matter of AS greenlighting it (or trolling fans for years)
Now do “Your Pretty Face is Going to Hell.”
Doodily ding dong tick tock!I really hope they do a better job with Metalocalypse than Doomstar.
Yeah, I’m a bit worried this will be one of those “so hyped it can’t possibly be good” situations.
woooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!! Fucking hooooooooooooo! Yeah baby, give me Bathank!
I am the bat.
I am SUPER hype for the first 2. It would be nice to have a movie to give a proper ending to Venture and Metaloclyapse. ATHF, meh less so. Don’t get me wrong I love the show and at this point must have seen every single episode at least once, but there really was no continuity through out the series. Outside of the core 4, Frylock, Meatwad, Master Shake and Carl, there was what at best 2 recurring characters, the MC Pee Pants character who was something different each time and the robot guy from the future. I never watched the first movie but I don’t know seems your kind of pushing it for a series that actually did kind of have a wrap up final episode.
ATHF had its time, and really didn’t have much of a running plot. So I thought it didn’t need to go any further.
Yeah it was more a series of standalone episodes that really had nothing to do with each other, about the closest to continuity they had was the 2 characters I mentioned and then the 2 I forgot, moononites and the Spacecataz guys. And again they did have an planned series finale, unlike VB and Metalocalypse.
WHERE (clap) IS (clap) THE (clap) MOVIE (clap) FOR (clap) FRISKY (clap) DINGO
As a former huge fan of Venture Bros., I just want to say that, while I admire the show for doing so, it eventually crawled so far up its own ass with its labryinthian mythology that it pushed me and several other casual viewers I know away with its absurdly dense continuity. I just couldn’t keep up, especially given the massive gaps between seasons.
It doesn’t have that many episodes and if you binged it, would be pretty easy to follow IMO.
we better get more tshirts. mine are getting worn out.
Good to know I’m not the only one who needs closure on the final fate of Dr. Roxso.C-C-C-Cocaine!
I can finally break out the tshirt in my profile pic again. Brendon’s known the endgame since S1E1 and I have high hopes for him to wind it up properly.
I’d much rather a “Home Movies” movie or even a “Lucy Daughter of the Devil” movie than Metalacolypse. But obviously the big news here is Venture Bros
So is this a result of Lazzo retiring, or did they just realize how much money is in bringing these back, at least in movie form? Especially Metalocalypse, everyone just wanted a proper finale. The story had run its course but left on a cliffhanger. At any rate I’m overjoyed, I honestly didn’t expect this to ever happen, at least until after either Malcom McDowell or Mark Hamill passed
I cried when The Venture Bros. got cancelled (yeah, I know… lame) so this has literally been the best news I’ve had all 2021.Aqua Teen is also in my top 5 shows ever (along with Venture Bros, BoJack, Better Call Saul and Arrested Development) so I’m super stoked to see it return when I was certain it had ended for good in 2015!!