The creators of Adult Swim’s landmark stop-motion comedy seriesRobot Chickenhave revealed that its reality TV special got several writers hooked on the genre they were parodying. Seth Green and Matt Senreich inadvertently sent their show’s scriptwriters down some weird rabbit holes in search of inspiration for the special episode.
Screen Rant’s Grant Hermanns recently caught up withprolific voice actorGreen and his creative partner, Senreich, foran exclusive interview, in anticipation ofRobot Chicken’s upcomingSelf-Discovery Special. The episode will premiere on Adult Swim at 11.30 PM ET/PT on Sunday, July 20.
During this interview,the series creators revealed that the episode draws extensively on Discovery Channel programming, including the network’s various survival reality TV shows. When asked how they came up with the list of reality shows they wantedRobot Chicken’s writers to parody, Green and Senreich responded with the following:
Seth Green: It was very easy. Here’s the thing, we just had all the writers and were like, “All right, let’s see everything that’s ever been on Discovery.” And man, those titles jump at you so fast. You’re just like, “What is this show?” We had several writers get hooked on several of these reality shows because they’re like, “I’m just gripped by this idea.”
Matt Senreich: There was one who actually came in being, like, all knowledge of these shows. Being like, “This might not be like that show,” and we looked at her and were like, “Okay.”
Seth Green: She was definitely like, “This joke doesn’t work on this part.” And we were like, “Thank God you’re here!” [Chuckles]
Matt Senreich: But when you see a title likeNaked and Afraid, you know there’s a lot to do with something like that. [Laughs]
Seth Green: Right, right? “Ow, my feet are killing me.” They have, like, a doctor whose entire thing is bursting pimples, like, that’s the whole show. Millions of viewers, by the way. What does that say about us as a species, right?
Matt Senreich: That might be the next generation of Geekdom. 20 years from now. [Laughs]
What Seth Green & Matt Senreich’s Comments Mean For Robot Chicken: Self-Discovery Special
The Special Will Parody The Reality TV Genre In A Lot Of Depth
Seth Green and Matt Senreich’s comments about the research process forRobot Chicken: Self-Discovery Specialmean thatwe can expect a thoroughgoing send-up of Discovery’s reality TV roster in the one-off episode. In advance ofNaked and Afraid: Apocalypse’s premierelater in July, it seems that Green and Senreich have singled out the survival series for special attention.
The team behindRobot Chickenhas apparently leftno stone unturned in its roast of the entire reality TV genre. While the stop-motion comedy series has satirized the genre in myriad previous sketches, it’s never focused a whole episode exclusively on reality shows until now. This special has required a deeper dive into reality TV than they’ve ever taken before.
Our Take On Robot Chicken’s Writers Going Down Weird Rabbit Holes Of Reality TV
Their Experiences Reflect How Addictive Reality Shows Can Be
It’s no surprise thatRobot Chicken’s writers got hooked on some of the stranger reality TV showsthey were researching, given how famously addictive the entire reality genre can be. But the lengths they went to in preparation for theSelf-Discovery Specialreflect how thechange inRobot Chicken’s release formathas impacted the show’s writing process.
In their interview withScreen Rant, Seth Green and Matt Senreich explained that their series will be sticking exclusively to longer, more in-depth parody specials from now on, rather than continuing to produce 20-episode seasons. This format change is the result of the increasing proportion of viewers who watchRobot Chickenon the streaming service HBO Max.
