Gather ‘round, folks, to enjoy the digital show because, while there are jesters and ringmasters, this is no joke! In a huge win for indie animation, Glitch Productions announced on its social media accounts that its smash hit The Amazing Digital Circus is coming to Netflix on October 4. The series will also still be on YouTube for free, streaming on both when episodes 4-9 arrive, according to Netflix.
“We’re still independently funding everything,” Glitch explained in their post. “We still get full control of the show, and episodes will continue to ALWAYS come out on YouTube first. Honestly feel that this is a HUGE step for indie animation and we couldn’t have done it without you all.” The message ended with, “SEE YOU WHEN EPISODE 3 RELEASES.”
Series creator Gooseworx added surprising context on her Twitter account, explaining Glitch can pull out of Netflix at any time. She explained, “I want to explicitly re-clarify that Netflix will have 0 creative control over the show, and that we can pull out of this deal if they try. Like every other TADC brand deal, this was a case of them approaching us and needing to conform to our terms. Not the other way around.” A series having full control with the ability to walk away from its streamer is somewhat unheard of in television, let alone in the animation industry. It’s a testament to the success of The Amazing Digital Circus.
‘The Amazing Digital Circus’ Is the Ringmaster of Indie Animation
It’s been quite the year for indie animation, with series like Hazbin Hotel smashing records on Prime Video after being picked up from its indie YouTube pilot. Its sister show, Helluva Boss, brings millions of YouTube views. However, they pale in comparison to Digital Circus, which has decimated their numbers to become one of the largest indie series on the platform. The pilot episode currently sits at 346 million views in less than a year since its debut, compared to Hazbin Hotel’s 112 million, which took over four years to garner. “Seeing The Amazing Digital Circus’s meteoric success happen in real time has been incredibly inspiring,” Amphibia’s creator Matt Braly shared on his Twitter account. “Wildly impressive to see the folks that actually make the show retain the rights and ownership of it. Congratulations!”
The series follows a human (Lizzie Freeman) trapped inside a virtual reality game with no memory of how she got there. Given a Jester avatar and the name Pomni, she meets other humans also trapped by the AI ringleader Caine (Alex Rochon). In the psychological comedy, the group must work together to play Caine’s games and not lose their sanity or risk becoming horrific monsters. The cast includes Michael Kovach, Amanda Hufford, Marissa Lenti, Sean Chiplock, Ashley Nichols, and Gooseworx. Along with the Netflix deal, The Amazing Digital Circus is also coming to manga with CoroCoro starting its serial on October 21 and official merchandise can be purchased at Hot Topic.
The first three episodes of The Amazing Digital Circus arrive on Netflix on October 4.
