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'Smiling Friends' creator gears up for adult animated series 'Dad's House' as story teases suburban chaos

Netflix's new adult animated series will revolve around a 13-year-old boy named Sean

Netflix has picked up a new Australian adult animated series by Michael Cusack, who co-created 'Smiling Friends' with Zach Hadel. The streaming service announced the arrival of 'Dad's House' on the platform on April 29. The series follows 13-year-old Sean in an Australian suburb, who, after his parents' divorce, spends every other weekend with his father, Ian. The well-meaning but chaotic Ian has a knack for tripping over his own feet. Dario Russo and David Ashby, the creators behind 'Danger 5' and 'Italian Spiderman', are showrunners alongside Michael Cusack.

'Dad's House' is produced by Princess Pictures and Bento Box Entertainment, with Cusack, Russo, and Ashby leading the voice cast alongside Felicity Ward, who is known for her roles in 'The Office', 'Wakefield', and 'The Inbetweeners 2'. Both Netflix and Michael Cusack have been successful in creating quality adult animated shows. The streaming platform's 'Big Mouth' and 'BoJack Horseman' are among some of the most viewed and acclaimed animated shows in the world, while 'Haunted Hotel' and 'Long Story Short' also enjoy a large following. Michael Cusack's 'Smiling Friends', which chronicles the misadventures of four dedicated employees at a small charity, also received universal acclaim. The show was lauded for its unique character design and for using a mix of animation styles, including rotoscoping, stop-motion, flash animation, and live-action.

'Smiling Friends' successfully ran for three seasons on Adult Swim and was renewed for a fourth and fifth season as well. However, the creators decided not to continue the story further. "To be perfectly honest, after we finished Season 3, Zach and I both had the same feeling where we felt pretty burnt out after putting years and years into this, but also pretty accomplished. We came to this feeling were we were like this could just be it after Season 3," Cusack explained on X.

The addition of 'Dad's House' to Netflix's ever-growing slate of adult animated shows reflects the growing interest in content featuring quirky characters and peculiar storylines. 'The Simpsons', 'Family Guy', and 'South Park' have become landmark shows over the years, leading several studios and independent creators to try to replicate their success. 'Rick and Morty' carved a special place among animated shows for its brilliant and often mind-bending storytelling. Whether 'Dad's House' becomes part of this elite list or gets lost in the lineup remains to be seen. Further information about the release date and supporting cast is currently awaited.