Simpsons director sends Slackers to 420TV

Forthcoming cannabis-themed OTT channel 420TV has acquired an original from David Silverman, who is best known for having directed numerous episodes of The Simpsons.

Super Slackers, a six-episode animation aimed at adults, follows a group of lazy friends who discover they have superpowers after their marijuana is swapped with a new strain being used in a government experiment.

The series is created and directed by Silverman, written by Joelle Sellner (Sonic Boom) and animated by Mike Blum. Mickey Gooch (Skit Bags Entertainment), Warren Zide (American Pie), Ash Venkatram and Ranajit Chaudhury serve as exec producers. Usman Shaikh is co-exec producer.

It is voiced by a range of social media influencers, including hip-hop artist and actor Jerry Purpdrank, comedian Arantza Fahnbulleh, martial artist, dancer and comedian Dan Nampaikid and Smosh YouTube star Olivia Sui.

“Super Slackers is the first original animated series from a director in the traditional space that leverages the talents and audience of household digital stars,” said Venkatram. “By choosing a racially diverse cast and throwing them into the culture of cannabis, we hope to give viewers a refreshing change from the vanilla content they normally consume on linear television.”

420TV is set to launch in January, as first reported by C21 in October. The channel, which will showcase premium cannabis-related news, entertainment and lifestyle content, has been boosted in recent weeks with the appointment of former Netflix alum Nick Nelson at parent OwnZones to oversee the launch and industry veteran Douglas A Lee as its general manager.