Today at Annecy 2023, the network revealed the iconic director has returned to helm the next chapter of his hugely popular Emmy Award-winning adult animated series.
Today at Annecy 2023, Adult Swim announced Genndy Tartakovsky’s Primal Season 3 is currently in production with Tartakovsky at the helm. The winner of five Emmy Awards, the action-packed animated series is produced by Cartoon Network Studios.
The show combines artistry, emotion, and action - the first two seasons of the series followed a caveman at the dawn of evolution as he forms an unlikely friendship with an almost extinct dinosaur. After bonding over unfortunate tragedies, they ostensibly become each other’s only hope of survival until a final standoff becomes fatal.
According to Adult Swim, the hugely popular show reached nearly 4 million viewers on Adult Swim last year, ranking as a top 10 animated series on cable in P18-49 and among the top 5 most watched Adult Swim original series on linear. On Max, Genndy Tartakovsky’s Primal is the 6th most popular Adult Swim series since the platform launched domestically. Outside of the US, the series is the 2nd most popular Adult Swim series since launch.
“It’s happening!” declared Tartakovsky. “Primal has become a contagious disease that I don’t ever want to cure. Every episode flows out like an unstoppable force beyond my control. Prepare yourselves Primal fans, for Season 3 is coming!!!”
“Most shows would have a hard time continuing after the main character is killed off, but this isn’t most shows,” added Adult Swim president Michael Ouweleen. “Leave it to Genndy and team to keep us all in suspense as Primal continues its adventure.”
Sam Register, President Warner Bros. Animation and Cartoon Network Studios, commented, “When Genndy says he is not finished with Primal our only job is to do everything possible to support that vision and give him the opportunity to tell more incredible and imaginative stories. I can’t wait to see where he takes us next.”
Adult Swim dropped a teaser video – check it out:
Tartakovsky is celebrated for his expansive body of work on popular animated series, including Dexter's Laboratory, Samurai Jack, Star Wars: Clone Wars, and Sym-Bionic Titan. His newest series Unicorn: Warriors Eternal, is currently airing on Adult Swim, next day on Max.
Genndy Tartakovsky's Primal is created by Tartakovsky with art direction from Scott Wills (Unicorn: Warriors Eternal, The Ren & Stimpy Show, Samurai Jack) and music composition from Tyler Bates (Unicorn: Warriors Eternal, Guardians of the Galaxy, Samurai Jack”) and Joanne Higginbottom (Unicorn: Warriors Eternal, Samurai Jack), and sound effects design from Joel Valentine (Unicorn: Warriors Eternal, Big City Greens, Samurai Jack).
Source: Adult Swim
Debbie Diamond Sarto is news editor at Animation World Network.
