Seems like we’re receiving character centric specials of all the Peanuts gang. Last summer we delved deeper into the spectacled introvert, Marcie. The next installment, which premieres later this week, provides the origin story behind Franklin.
Snoop Presents: Welcome Home, Franklin, finds our protagonist recently moving into town and anxious to make new friends. His initial attempts aren’t successful, but he sees the neighborhood Soap Box Derby race as an excellent opportunity to make a positive impression.
Ahead of the release of Snoopy Presents: Welcome Home, Franklin, we spoke with the creatives who helped bring the story to life. Co-writer Robb Armstrong, director Raymond S. Persi, and co-writer and executive producer Craig Schulz provided insight on the special.
Franklin made his first appearance in the comic strip all the way back in 1968. How would the television special update the character to today’s audience while still keeping true to what came before? Schulz talked about their approach while developing the story.
“We started with the essence of how Charlie Brown met Franklin on the beach with a beach ball and so forth. Then with that, we started exploring where we wanted to go with the story,” he said. “We took the story forwards and backwards to find out where Franklin comes from and his journey to get out to this crazy neighborhood in the world with all these strange kids and yet how he embraces them. For me, the message was Franklin finding a ‘Home.’ Not a home in a building, but a home where he feels secure and safe and he can life the rest of his life there.”
Armstrong has a deep connection to the character. After all, Franklin received his last name from the cartoonist behind JumpStart. Welcome Home, Franklin was a new experience for Armstrong working for television. He found that he could relate even more to the titular character.
“It was a challenge in the sense that I work alone with JumpStart, and I’ve been working alone for 34 straight years. So to suddenly have to collaborate I found myself in a similar plight along with Franklin, the cartoon character making the writing process easier,” Armstrong shared. “He wants to come into an existing situation. An existing group of people. He wants to win them over. He wants things to go well. He wants to win at all cost. I also felt that. I have to come in here and show them what I got.”
After creating specials for Marcie and now Franklin, who could be next to be featured from the Peanuts gang? Schulz has an idea of who he’d like to write about next. “I want to do Pig-Pen obviously. Pig-Pen has been near and dear to my heart for many years because I’ve kind of lived the Pig-Pen existence basically racing motorcross and BMX and all that sort of stuff. I’m hoping to do that. I’ve just got to press Apple on it. Call Apple and say hey, let’s get Pig-Pen on the screen.”
For his part, Persi was just as enthusiastic about working with the character known for his filth. “I want to do a Pig-Pen one with Craig. I love the character. All these characters have these insecurities and hangups and he doesn’t. Why is he so confident? I’d love to know. I’d love to explore that.”
Stream Snoopy Presents: Welcome Home Franklin beginning Friday, February 16, on Apple TV+.
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