Jul
24,
2024
The animated internet sensation, Skibidi Toilet, which boasts over 43M Youtube subscribers is now being developed for TV and film treatment by director Michael Bay and former Paramount Pictures president Adam Goodman, as announced this morning in Variety.
Just over a year ago (February 2023), Alexey Gerasimov, a 23-year old from the Soviet Republic of Georgia uploaded an 11-second video to his YouTube channel DaFuq!?Boom! called “skibidi toilet.”
The clip featured a head emerging from a toilet singing and quickly became a viral sensation. With now more than 72 episodes ranging from one to five minute clips, Gerasimov has created his own viral brand and animated world.
The series of videos depicts a violent war between the Toilets and the Cyborgs and contain violence and explosions with little to no dialogue. The IP can also be found on Roblox, an online platform that showcases “Skibidi Toilet”inspired video games made by fans, collectively having over 75M plays to date.
Interest from iconic action director Michael Bay and industry veteran Adam Goodman, who together run an independent studio called Invisible Narratives, brings the fandom into a new sphere. Goodman stated, “He’s (Alex Gerasimov) building something that could be the next ‘Transformers’ or could be a Marvel universe.”
This wouldn’t be the first time a Youtube sensation made the jump to Hollywood, with YouTube’s icon MrBeast securing a TV deal with Amazon, but it could signs of an ongoing trend.
With a built in, engaged audience and Hollywood scaling back on risks amid economic woes, digital creators with proven IP could become the next focus of big budget franchises.