# Rocko's Modern Life: Static Cling
**Rocko's Modern Life: Static Cling** is a 45-minute American animated television special, a revival of the 1990s [Nickelodeon](https://www.edgepedia.org/nickelodeon) series *Rocko's Modern Life*, that premiered on Netflix on August 9, 2019.[1](https://rockosmodernlife.fandom.com/wiki/Rocko%27s_Modern_Life%3A_Static_Cling) It was directed by series creator Joe Murray and Cosmo Segurson, written by Murray, Doug Lawrence, and Martin Olson, and produced by [Nickelodeon Animation Studio](https://www.edgepedia.org/nickelodeon-animation-studio) with distribution by Netflix.[1](https://rockosmodernlife.fandom.com/wiki/Rocko%27s_Modern_Life%3A_Static_Cling) The special reunites the original voice cast and picks up the story roughly two decades after the series finale, following the wallaby Rocko and his friends as they return to a changed world.[2](https://ir.paramount.com/static-files/8fdf8e03-a662-4aa9-a5f7-12eadd923f88)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Format and length | 45-minute animated special (running time listed as 45:55), digital ink-and-paint animation in 16:9 HD[1](https://rockosmodernlife.fandom.com/wiki/Rocko%27s_Modern_Life%3A_Static_Cling) • [3](https://www.intanibase.com/iad_entries/entry?shortID=59804) |
| Premiere | August 9, 2019, on Netflix[1](https://rockosmodernlife.fandom.com/wiki/Rocko%27s_Modern_Life%3A_Static_Cling) |
| Directors | Joe Murray and Cosmo Segurson[4](https://www.syfy.com/syfy-wire/rockos-modern-life-creator-interview) |
| Voice cast | Original cast returns: Carlos Alazraqui (Rocko, Spunky), Tom Kenny (Heffer), Mr. Lawrence (Filburt), Charlie Adler (Ed and Bev Bighead, Mr. Dupette), Joe Murray (Ralph/Rachel Bighead)[2](https://ir.paramount.com/static-files/8fdf8e03-a662-4aa9-a5f7-12eadd923f88) |
| Premise | After 20 years in space, Rocko returns to 21st-century O-Town and tries to get his favorite cartoon, The Fatheads, back on the air[5](https://www.netflix.com/ca/title/81091977) |
| Notable storyline | Ralph Bighead is revealed to be a trans woman, Rachel; GLAAD's Nick Adams consulted on the portrayal[3](https://www.intanibase.com/iad_entries/entry?shortID=59804) • [6](https://queeranimation.omeka.net/exhibits/show/genre/item/184) |
| Reception | 92% Tomatometer on Rotten Tomatoes (24 reviews); Metascore 78 on Metacritic (4 reviews)[7](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/rockos_modern_life_static_cling) • [8](https://www.metacritic.com/tv/rockos-modern-life-static-cling/) |
## Spoilers
### Plot and themes
The special picks up more than two decades after the 1996 series finale, in which the main characters were blasted into space by a rocket attached to Rocko's house.[4](https://www.syfy.com/syfy-wire/rockos-modern-life-creator-interview) Rocko, Heffer, Filburt, and Spunky return to O-Town to find a hyper-modern city of coffee shops on every corner, food trucks, constantly upgraded touch-screen O-Phones, an instant-print kiosk that has replaced Rocko's old job at Kind-of-a-Lot-O-Comics, and radioactive energy drinks that turn consumers into mutants.[13](https://www.awn.com/animationworld/every-wallaby-has-his-day-rocko-returns-rockos-modern-life-static-cling) Rocko struggles to accept 21st-century life while Heffer and Filburt embrace new technology, social media, and food trucks; he believes his nostalgia for the past can save him from the modern world.[2](https://ir.paramount.com/static-files/8fdf8e03-a662-4aa9-a5f7-12eadd923f88)
Accepting change is the special's central theme. Rocko's mission is to revive his favorite cartoon, The Fatheads, whose creator, Ralph Bighead, has disappeared on a journey of self-discovery.[5](https://www.netflix.com/ca/title/81091977) • [6](https://queeranimation.omeka.net/exhibits/show/genre/item/184) The creator is revealed to be Rachel, a trans woman, and the special treats her transition as part of its broader story about change.[3](https://www.intanibase.com/iad_entries/entry?shortID=59804) Murray and his team consulted GLAAD, and specifically Nick Adams, then the organization's director of transgender representation, on writing the character.[6](https://queeranimation.omeka.net/exhibits/show/genre/item/184) Murray described the special as telling "a beautiful, and hilarious, story about accepting change."[14](https://www.nickalive.net/2019/08/rockos-modern-life-static-cling-will.html?hl=en&m=1)
The special is also self-aware about its own existence. The Los Angeles Times' Robert Lloyd wrote that "Rocko" was always self-aware and that "Static Cling" goes all in, "with a metafictional recounting of its own rebirth," and the A.V. Club's Kevin Johnson noted that it uses the "rebooting old property" concept to jab at the corporate nature behind most reboots.[7](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/rockos_modern_life_static_cling) Murray said he told Nickelodeon before signing on that he was not interested in a watered-down version of the show and wanted to keep the political and social satire that "bit."[15](https://sbpress.com/2019/09/rockos-modern-life-creator-joe-murray-wants-you-to-embrace-change/)
## Production
Nickelodeon announced the special on August 11, 2016, as a greenlit hour-long project with Murray as executive producer, one of three classic Nickelodeon properties then being reimagined alongside *[Hey Arnold!: The Jungle Movie](https://www.edgepedia.org/hey-arnold-the-jungle-movie)* and *Invader Zim*.[9](https://uploads.strikinglycdn.com/files/5580349d-8444-498c-99b7-3d71b5dde2d7/waxexujiginenosanal.pdf) • [2](https://ir.paramount.com/static-files/8fdf8e03-a662-4aa9-a5f7-12eadd923f88) According to Murray's own studio account, Nickelodeon approached Joe Murray Studio in 2015 about reviving the characters; after some hesitancy, Murray wrote the base of the story, and the special was produced in 2016 and 2017.[10](https://joemurraystudio.com/joe-murray-studio-animated-projects/) Nickelodeon executive Chris Viscardi helped move the project forward, and it ultimately found its home on Netflix.[10](https://joemurraystudio.com/joe-murray-studio-animated-projects/) On May 10, 2019, Viacom president Robert Bakish announced that Netflix had acquired distribution rights, with a summer 2019 premiere confirmed days later.[1](https://rockosmodernlife.fandom.com/wiki/Rocko%27s_Modern_Life%3A_Static_Cling)
Murray said he did not consider the special a reboot. "I don't look at this really as a reboot. I think it's more of a continuation of the original," he told Animation Scoop, adding that he wanted to say something about networks asking for 20-year-old properties to return.[11](https://www.animationscoop.com/joe-murray-talks-rockos-modern-life-static-cling/) The animation was done in pencil, and the team worked to match the look of the original show.[11](https://www.animationscoop.com/joe-murray-talks-rockos-modern-life-static-cling/) Murray also explained the title: "when something is Static, it doesn't go anywhere. And also, old TV has a lot of static... So, clinging to that was what Rocko was doing."[12](https://comicbook.com/tv-shows/news/rockos-modern-life-joe-murray-interview-static-cling-explained/)
## Reception
Critical response was favorable. Rotten Tomatoes reported a 92% Tomatometer from 24 reviews, with the critics consensus calling the special "pleasantly strange and surprisingly thoughtful" and praising it as both a nostalgic look back and a step forward; the audience Popcornmeter stood at 66% from more than 250 ratings.[7](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/rockos_modern_life_static_cling) Metacritic assigned a Metascore of 78, "generally favorable," based on four critic reviews, all positive.[8](https://www.metacritic.com/tv/rockos-modern-life-static-cling/) [The A.V. Club](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-a-v-club) gave it a 91, saying the special "maintains the original show's look, sound, and aesthetic perfectly," while the Los Angeles Times called it "a successful and satisfying work of animated art."[8](https://www.metacritic.com/tv/rockos-modern-life-static-cling/) Starburst gave 9/10, writing that the special was "ballsy enough to champion the marginalised and smart enough to accomplish it without abandoning the show's lovably strange approach."[7](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/rockos_modern_life_static_cling)
Not all reviews were positive. [TV Guide](https://www.edgepedia.org/tv-guide)'s Brian Patchett argued that the creators' attempt to apply the 1990s series' attitude to the modern world was impotent in the face of a real world frequently beyond parody.[16](https://www.tvguide.com/news/rockos-modern-life-static-cling-review-netflix/) The special is rated TV-Y7 and streams on Netflix, including on the ad-supported tier.[5](https://www.netflix.com/ca/title/81091977) • [17](https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/rockos-modern-life-static-cling)
## References
1. [Rocko's Modern Life: Static Cling, Rocko's Modern Life Wiki (Fandom)](https://rockosmodernlife.fandom.com/wiki/Rocko%27s_Modern_Life%3A_Static_Cling)
2. [Nickelodeon's Brand-New TV Special Rocko's Modern Life: Static Cling Reunites Original Voice Cast, Paramount press release (June 22, 2017)](https://ir.paramount.com/static-files/8fdf8e03-a662-4aa9-a5f7-12eadd923f88)
3. [Rocko's Modern Life: Static Cling (2019), The Internet Animation Database](https://www.intanibase.com/iad_entries/entry?shortID=59804)
4. [Rocko's Modern Life returns to Netflix with a modern day spin, with GLAAD's help, SYFY WIRE](https://www.syfy.com/syfy-wire/rockos-modern-life-creator-interview)
5. [Rocko's Modern Life: Static Cling, Netflix official site](https://www.netflix.com/ca/title/81091977)
6. [Rocko's Modern Life: Static Cling, Queer Animation digital exhibit](https://queeranimation.omeka.net/exhibits/show/genre/item/184)
7. [Rocko's Modern Life: Static Cling, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/rockos_modern_life_static_cling)
8. [Rocko's Modern Life: Static Cling, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/tv/rockos-modern-life-static-cling/)
9. [Rocko's Modern Life episode guide (production history compilation)](https://uploads.strikinglycdn.com/files/5580349d-8444-498c-99b7-3d71b5dde2d7/waxexujiginenosanal.pdf)
10. [Joe Murray Studio Animated Projects](https://joemurraystudio.com/joe-murray-studio-animated-projects/)
11. [Joe Murray talks "Rocko's Modern Life: Static Cling," Animation Scoop](https://www.animationscoop.com/joe-murray-talks-rockos-modern-life-static-cling/)
12. [Rocko's Modern Life Creator Explains Why the Special Is Called "Static Cling," ComicBook.com](https://comicbook.com/tv-shows/news/rockos-modern-life-joe-murray-interview-static-cling-explained/)
13. [Every Wallaby Has His Day: Rocko Returns in 'Rocko's Modern Life: Static Cling,' Animation World Network](https://www.awn.com/animationworld/every-wallaby-has-his-day-rocko-returns-rockos-modern-life-static-cling)
14. ['Rocko's Modern Life: Static Cling' Will Feature a Prominent Trans Story Arc, NickALive!](https://www.nickalive.net/2019/08/rockos-modern-life-static-cling-will.html?hl=en&m=1)
15. ["Rocko's Modern Life" creator Joe Murray wants you to embrace change, The Stony Brook Press](https://sbpress.com/2019/09/rockos-modern-life-creator-joe-murray-wants-you-to-embrace-change/)
16. [Rocko's Modern Life: Static Cling Review: Classic 'Toon Is Still Stuck in the '90s, TV Guide](https://www.tvguide.com/news/rockos-modern-life-static-cling-review-netflix/)
17. [Rocko's Modern Life: Static Cling streaming, JustWatch](https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/rockos-modern-life-static-cling)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Films and standalone screen works › Individual films by title and year › Franchise and series entries as standalone works › Animated and family franchise film entries › Comedy and adventure entries*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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