Life’s A Garden, Dig It: ‘Joe Dirt’ Series In Development At Sony, Fox

David Spade’s mullet-sporting cult comedy character Joe Dirt could be heading back to the screen, this time in animation. Fox is developing an animated sequel series to the 2001 live-action film, with Spade set to reprise the title role and executive produce.

According to Deadline, the series will pick up 25 years after the original movie. Joe is now married to Brandy and raising three teenage daughters, but remains the same relentlessly optimistic underdog despite the increasingly difficult problems life sends his way.

Scott Gairdner, whose credits include Moonbeam City and Krapopolis, is writing the series. Sony Pictures Television and Fox Entertainment will co-produce. No animation studio or potential release date has been announced, and the project remains in development. No word on which other cast members may or may not return.

Directed by Dennie Gordon and written by Spade and Fred Wolf, the original Joe Dirt followed its titular character across the country as he searched for the parents who abandoned him as a child. The film received poor reviews when it opened in 2001 but went on to develop a significant cult following. Whether that fanbase is significant enough to carry the show or if new audiences will tune in remains to be seen.

In 2015, Spade returned for a largely forgotten follow-up, Joe Dirt 2: Beautiful Loser, which debuted on Sony’s streaming platform Crackle. The new project would mark the franchise’s animation debut, although it is not the first attempt to make an animated Joe Dirt series. Spade previously developed one for TBS in 2010, but the project never made it to air.