While Barney and Friends appeared to be “a joyful family” on screen, it appears that things were not so nice behind the scenes for the purple dinosaur. NBC-owned streaming service Peacock has announced that a Barney the Dinosaur documentary is currently in development for the streaming service, nearly 30 years after Barney first aired on PBS. The series will follow “the rock star-like journey of Barney the Dinosaur,” who “caught the affections of millions of children before becoming the subject of anger and rage throughout pop culture, the early internet, and playgrounds around the world,” according to Peacock (via The Wrap). The three-part series, which has yet to be named, is set to premiere on Netflix in 2022.
The series will feature “exclusive interviews and archival footage,” as well as never-before-seen “first-hand accounts of the Barney phenomenon from the cast and crew to its most outspoken critics.” It will also look at the PBS show’s run from 1992 to 2010 — as well as the series’ spinoff films — and how they were received by the general public.
Scout Productions, the executive producers of Queer Eye and The Hype, will direct and executive produce the Barney the Dinosaur documentary, which will be directed and executive produced by Tommy Avallone of The Bill Murray Stories. Wendy Greene, Trent Johnson, Raymond Esposito, as well as Scout’s Rob Eric, David Collins, Michael Williams, Amy Goodman Kass, and Joel Chiodi, are all producing. Rod Aissa, NBCUniversal’s executive vice president of unscripted entertainment, said the network is “ecstatic” to be working on the series, which is “sure to captivate audiences.”
“Barney the Dinosaur was a ubiquitous character for children and parents alike and we are thrilled to work with the Scout Productions team to bring this three-part series to Peacock. This documentary is bound to captivate audiences like Barney has over the years.”
