“Family Guy,” the short-running cartoon which made its debut on Fox at the beginning of 1999, is rumored to be coming back.
Cancelled in early 2002, the show known for frequent pop culture references and controversial subject matter developed a cult following among fans.
In April 2003, Cartoon Network’s “Adult Swim” – the channel’s late-night programming geared to an older audience – picked up the show where it holds a permanent time slot.
According to USA Today, 20th Century Fox is considering to resume production of “Family Guy,” which was cancelled due to low ratings.
The article mentioned that the reason for the sudden interest in bringing “Family Guy” back as a series is due mainly to the DVD sales and the high ratings of the show in syndication.
The first DVD set, containing seasons one and two, has sold almost a million copies, according to the story, while season three has sold more than half a million to date. This makes “Family Guy” the top-selling television show of the year.
In addition to creating new episodes, there is talk of a full-length DVD feature.
“There is a very good possibility that it will happen very soon,” said series creator Seth MacFarlane in a MSN Entertainment News interview. “We are in the budget stages. It will definitely be a full-length feature.”
In the same interview, MacFarlane also spoke of the possibility of new episodes, though he did not mention Fox.
“Cartoon Network has expressed interest but the problem is that it is such an expensive show to produce, and a cable network, they just can’t do it,” he said. “They don’t have the $1 million per episode that it costs.”
When asked about the possibilities of “Family Guy” resuming as a series on Fox or the production of a straight-to-DVD feature, Shari Rosenblum, public relations manager at Fox Home Entertainment, could not comment on the details except to say that they are all just rumors.
Although only rumors, she said, “It would not surprise me if numerous projects resulted from the success of the “Family Guy’s” release on DVD,”
To fans of the show, this is big news.
“I think that ‘Family Guy’ is a hilarious show,” said Chris McConnell, an engineering freshman. “It would be great if they came out with some new episodes next season.”
Desi Waguespack, a business junior, agrees.
“It is a very entertaining, very funny show, where you can expect the unexpected,” she said. “If there was ever a ‘Family Guy’ movie or new episodes, I would definitely pay to see them.”
“Family Guy” reruns currently air on Cartoon Network every Monday through Thursday at 10 p.m. and are rebroadcast at 1 a.m.