Oscar® Nominated Animation Studio Xilam Animation Announces Nickelodeon Doubles Up with Comedies ATHLETICUS + MR MAGOO

Global deal for short-form CGI series ‘Athleticus’ and exclusive pay-TV deal for animated comedy ‘Mr Magoo’ in the UK

Academy Award® nominated French animation studio Xilam Animation has secured a pair of deals with Nickelodeon for its short-form series CGI series Athleticus (60x2’15) and animated comedy Mr Magoo (78x7’).

In a global deal, Nickelodeon takes exclusive pay-TV rights to two seasons of Athleticus covering Asia Pacific, EMEA and Latin America. The broadcaster has also acquired all TV rights for Athleticus in Benelux, Italy, Vietnam, Philippines and Argentina. Additionally, Nickelodeon has picked up the exclusive pay-TV rights for Xilam’s hit comedy series Mr Magoo (78x7’) in the UK, where the series launches on Nicktoons this week.

“We’re very excited to be building upon our successful partnership with Nickelodeon and to see the broadcaster become home to two further shows from our slate,” said Morgann Favennec, EVP Distribution at Xilam Animation. “With its charming characters and humorous stories, we know families all over the globe are going to love watching Athleticus and following the fantastic response to Mr Magoo in the UK, we’re very much looking forward to bringing the series’ hilarious hijinks to new audiences.” 

Targeting family audiences, Athleticus is produced by Xilam’s recently acquired CGI-studio Cube Creative and features wild animals taking part in competitive sports, ranging from table tennis to high bar, bobsleigh to curling. How successful the animals are at each of the sports entirely depends on their personality and anatomies resulting in very comical, and often poetic, results. The series is created and directed by the multi-award winning Nicolas Deveaux.

About Xilam
A major player in animation, Xilam is an integrated studio founded in 1999 that creates, produces and distributes original programmes in more than 190 countries for both children and adult audiences. Xilam content is broadcast on television, and is also available on SVoD platforms including Netflix, Disney+, Amazon and NBC Universal, and ADVoD streaming platforms including YouTube and Facebook.

With its creativity and capacity for innovation recognised worldwide, and editorial and commercial expertise at the cutting edge of its industry, Xilam is positioned as a key player in a fast-growing market. Each year, Xilam builds real successes and capitalises on its powerful historical brands including Oggy and the Cockroaches and Zig & Sharko, as well as new properties such as Oggy Oggy for a preschool audience, Moka, Mr. Magoo, and Academy Award® nominated adult feature film I Lost My Body. Xilam’s expanding and strong catalogue now consists of over 2,200 episodes and three feature films.

In 2019, Xilam acquired Cube Creative, a studio providing the company with unique expertise in 3D and computer generated images. Xilam employs more than 500 individuals, including 400 artists, across its studios in Paris, Lyon, Angoulême and Ho Chi Minh in Vietnam.