# Archibald's Next Big Thing
**Archibald's Next Big Thing** is an American animated children's comedy series produced by [DreamWorks Animation](https://www.edgepedia.org/dreamworks-animation), created by actor [Tony Hale](https://www.edgepedia.org/tony-hale) and based on his 2014 children's book of the same name, written with Tony Biaggne. It follows Archibald Strutter, an optimistic chicken who "yes-ands" his way through life from one unplanned adventure to the next, and it premiered on Netflix on September 6, 2019 with a 13-episode first season.[1](https://www.awn.com/animationworld/theres-nothing-little-about-tony-hales-adventurous-chicken-archibalds-next-big-thing) • [2](https://www.animationscoop.com/creator-eric-fogel-on-dreamworks-archibalds-next-big-thing/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Premise | Archibald Strutter, a cheerful yellow chicken, meets every experience with wide-eyed optimism; each episode begins with an ordinary activity that leads him in an unplanned direction[1](https://www.awn.com/animationworld/theres-nothing-little-about-tony-hales-adventurous-chicken-archibalds-next-big-thing) • [3](https://tvtantrum.com/shows/archibalds-next-big-thing) |
| Origin | Based on the 2014 children's book by Tony Hale and Tony Biaggne[1](https://www.awn.com/animationworld/theres-nothing-little-about-tony-hales-adventurous-chicken-archibalds-next-big-thing) |
| Premiere | 13-episode first season, Netflix, September 6, 2019[2](https://www.animationscoop.com/creator-eric-fogel-on-dreamworks-archibalds-next-big-thing/) |
| Voice cast | Tony Hale as Archibald; Rosamund Pike as Narrator; Kari Wahlgren as Bea; Adam Pally as Sage; Chelsea Kane as Loy; Jordan Fisher as Finly; Matty Cardarople as Preston[4](https://next-episode.net/archibalds-next-big-thing) |
| Format | 2D digital animation made in Toon Boom Harmony with a painterly, storybook look; 12-minute episodes[1](https://www.awn.com/animationworld/theres-nothing-little-about-tony-hales-adventurous-chicken-archibalds-next-big-thing) • [4](https://next-episode.net/archibalds-next-big-thing) |
| Continuation | *Archibald's Next Big Thing Is Here* premiered on Peacock on February 18, 2021[5](https://www.awn.com/animationworld/archibalds-next-big-thing-here-returns-more-slapstick-and-sincerity) |
| Recognition | Annie Award nomination for Best Storyboarding, TV/Media, for the episode "Baritone Tea Part 1"[6](https://www.awn.com/animationworld/storyboarding-crazy-hijinks-dreamworks-archibalds-next-big-thing) |
## Spoilers
### Premise and characters
Archibald Strutter is a simple chicken who "yes-ands" his way through life, meaning he accepts whatever each moment offers and builds on it. Living in the moment often leads him astray, but he always finds his way back home to an egg-shaped house in the center of Crackridge, which he shares with his three siblings, Sage, Finly, and Loy, and his trusty sidekick, Bea.[7](https://www.dreamworks.com/shows/archibalds-next-big-thing) The series is framed as a comedy about one chicken's joy for life and about celebrating the journey, not just the destination.[7](https://www.dreamworks.com/shows/archibalds-next-big-thing)
A recurring device is the Memory Wall: Archibald keeps a picture of every adventure and every new person he meets, printed out and posted on a wall. Executive producer Eric Fogel described it as a way to show that the adventures are meaningful to him and to encourage young viewers to experience the world around them rather than look at their phones.[2](https://www.animationscoop.com/creator-eric-fogel-on-dreamworks-archibalds-next-big-thing/)
## Origin and development
Hale has said the character grew out of a lesson from his own career. After booking *Arrested Development* in 2003, his dream job, he found himself still asking "What's next?" and losing sight of where he was; the book and the show channel the corrective idea of being present.[8](https://www.avclub.com/tony-hale-on-a-bald-chicken-his-big-roles-and-living-1798271751)
Eric Fogel, previously the creator of the stop-motion series *Celebrity Deathmatch*, was brought in early to direct the pilot, written by Jake Moffat and Drew Champion from Hale's book. He found the pilot script a little older and more sophisticated in its comedy than the book, and connected with it. A few weeks into boarding the pilot, he and the team completed two sequences that captured the show's voice, tone, and aesthetic and took them to Netflix, which greenlit the series on the strength of Hale and the material.[1](https://www.awn.com/animationworld/theres-nothing-little-about-tony-hales-adventurous-chicken-archibalds-next-big-thing) Fogel began as co-executive producer and became showrunner halfway through the first season, overseeing production from script through post.[1](https://www.awn.com/animationworld/theres-nothing-little-about-tony-hales-adventurous-chicken-archibalds-next-big-thing)
## Visual style and storytelling
The production aimed to make the show look like a storybook come to life, using heavy texture and color, painterly environmental treatments, and a tactile, intricately detailed sweater for Archibald. The team worked in Toon Boom Harmony but approached it as a hand-drawn 2D show, pushing broad poses and dynamic, cinematic camera angles rather than the flatter staging typical of TV comedy animation. Fogel cited [Wes Anderson](https://www.edgepedia.org/wes-anderson)'s films, including *Fantastic Mr. Fox* and *The Life Aquatic*, as inspiration for the cut-away, dollhouse-style views of Archibald's egg-shaped house.[1](https://www.awn.com/animationworld/theres-nothing-little-about-tony-hales-adventurous-chicken-archibalds-next-big-thing) • [2](https://www.animationscoop.com/creator-eric-fogel-on-dreamworks-archibalds-next-big-thing/)
Fogel described each story as a puzzle that seems simple on the surface but is fairly complicated to construct, with the writers pushing to avoid repetition and keep the series fresh.[1](https://www.awn.com/animationworld/theres-nothing-little-about-tony-hales-adventurous-chicken-archibalds-next-big-thing) The pilot episode, "Chicken at Sea," set the show's tone for unexpected weirdness: Archibald loses his family and ends up at an underwater monster-truck-style rally in which whales crash into sunken sea vessels.[1](https://www.awn.com/animationworld/theres-nothing-little-about-tony-hales-adventurous-chicken-archibalds-next-big-thing)
## Reception and audience guidance
Common Sense Media rates the series for ages 5 and up and reports no violence, sex, language, products, or drinking, drugs, or smoking. Its review highlights Archibald's enthusiasm, curiosity, and can-do attitude as positive messages, while rating the educational value as very little.[9](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/tv-reviews/archibalds-next-big-thing) An independent sensory review scores the show 3 of 5 for stimulation, with moderate pacing, sound effects, and scene changes, and notes occasional songs alongside visual jokes.[3](https://tvtantrum.com/shows/archibalds-next-big-thing) The series holds a 7.5/10 rating on IMDb.[10](https://screenwiseapp.com/media/archibald-s-next-big-thing-show)
## Archibald's Next Big Thing Is Here
A continuation, *Archibald's Next Big Thing Is Here*, premiered on Peacock on February 18, 2021. Hale described it as a new installment rather than a reboot: totally new episodes with the same character, world, and attitude.[5](https://www.awn.com/animationworld/archibalds-next-big-thing-here-returns-more-slapstick-and-sincerity) • [11](https://comicbook.com/tv-shows/news/archibalds-next-big-thing-is-here-tony-hale-interview-explains-difference-netflix-peacock/) The new episodes lean into genre-specific and fantastical stories, including shrink rays, body switching, cave chickens, board-game adventures, and a two-part role-playing-game episode set in a magical realm. One story, written by Jacob Moffat and Drew Champion, deals with a death in a Dungeons-and-Dragons-type episode and how each character grieves differently.[5](https://www.awn.com/animationworld/archibalds-next-big-thing-here-returns-more-slapstick-and-sincerity)
The episode "Baritone Tea Part 1," a two-part musical adventure in which Archibald accidentally drinks his brother Finly's voice-enhancing tea and must track down its ingredients, earned the series an Annie Award nomination for Best Storyboarding in the TV/Media category.[6](https://www.awn.com/animationworld/storyboarding-crazy-hijinks-dreamworks-archibalds-next-big-thing)
## References
1. [There's Nothing Little About Tony Hale's Adventurous Chicken in 'Archibald's Next Big Thing', Animation World Network](https://www.awn.com/animationworld/theres-nothing-little-about-tony-hales-adventurous-chicken-archibalds-next-big-thing)
2. [Executive Producer Eric Fogel on DreamWorks' "Archibald's Next Big Thing", Animation Scoop](https://www.animationscoop.com/creator-eric-fogel-on-dreamworks-archibalds-next-big-thing/)
3. [Is Archibald's Next Big Thing Low Stimulation?, TVTantrum](https://tvtantrum.com/shows/archibalds-next-big-thing)
4. [Archibald's Next Big Thing TV Show Air Dates & Track Episodes, Next Episode](https://next-episode.net/archibalds-next-big-thing)
5. ['Archibald's Next Big Thing Is Here' Returns with More Slapstick and Sincerity, Animation World Network](https://www.awn.com/animationworld/archibalds-next-big-thing-here-returns-more-slapstick-and-sincerity)
6. [Storyboarding the Crazy Hijinks of DreamWorks' 'Archibald's Next Big Thing', Animation World Network](https://www.awn.com/animationworld/storyboarding-crazy-hijinks-dreamworks-archibalds-next-big-thing)
7. [Archibald's Next Big Thing Is Here!, DreamWorks](https://www.dreamworks.com/shows/archibalds-next-big-thing)
8. [Tony Hale on a bald chicken, his big roles, and living in the present, The A.V. Club](https://www.avclub.com/tony-hale-on-a-bald-chicken-his-big-roles-and-living-1798271751)
9. [Archibald's Next Big Thing, Parents' Guide & TV Review, Common Sense Media](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/tv-reviews/archibalds-next-big-thing)
10. [Archibald's Next Big Thing, WISE Score & Parent Review, Screenwise](https://screenwiseapp.com/media/archibald-s-next-big-thing-show)
11. [Archibald's Next Big Thing Is Here's Tony Hale Explains Peacock's New Installment, ComicBook.com](https://comicbook.com/tv-shows/news/archibalds-next-big-thing-is-here-tony-hale-interview-explains-difference-netflix-peacock/)
---
*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Series and fictional screen worlds › Scripted television and comedy series › Animated television series (individual series) › Children's animated adventure and fantasy series › Comedy and slice-of-life series › Premiered 1961 to 2019*
*Initially written Oct 3, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license