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Piggy is an animated apocalyptic horror drama television series, created by Luke O'Reilly for the streaming service Bloxflix, based on the video game of the same name. The television series is set in the city of "Lucella", where a bunch of well-liked human-like pigs hang out and play together. A police officer named Miguel, who works for a corporation tries to unravel the mystery behind Georgie Piggy's disappearance from the Piggy Family. After a virus infected everyone in the city, even the piggies, Miguel teams up with Doggy, Bunny, Zizzy, and Pony to try to stop Mr. P, the guy responsible for the illness, from spreading it further. The series' principal cast included Lauren Black, Kameko James, Mary Cox, Nazaire Brown, Sorin Shaw, Mason Jenkins, and Minoo Spencer in addition to Alexander Stephens as George and Cynthia Anderson as the other actors. Egeus Flores played Miguel, the series' primary protagonist.
When Luke was employed at an animation studio and the video game Piggy was still in its infancy, he approached Bloxflix with the concept for an animated television series based on the game. The production budget for the majority of the episodes ended up being more than typical when it was given the official green-lit, making it one of the biggest animated television series productions ever on the streaming service. The writing team of Musa Turner, Thomas Payne, and Kalle Burns, who have worked on many television series in the past, directed all of the episodes, Sheary Gonzalez served as producer, and Luke, the creator of the series, served as the show's executive producer. Piggy was among of the earliest animated television programs based on a video game.
Piggy premiered on January 4, 2023 and ended after two seasons on March 29, 2024. It received near-universal critical acclaim from critics, audiences and fan of the video game alike with praise aim at its directing, animation, use of humor, horror themes, character development and writing. When it first aired, Piggy was the most viewed television program, holding the top rank for over 15 weeks straight. It was also the only program to last through the 10-week mark, after which most television programs are finished. Additionally, the series gained a cult following from gamers and was one of the most well-known series ever.
Premise
The series takes place in the center of the city "Lucella", which is located in the country Evalia, where anthropomorphic animals and some Robloxians live. It focuses on a police officer named Miguel, who resides and works for a business that assists in resolving crimes and issues with the animals and Robloxians of the city. One day, Miguel was tasked to investigate the mysterious disappearance of Georgie Piggy from the Piggy Family. He then came to the realization that he was a survivor in the city because a virus had been spreading to everyone. Realizing that Mr. P, who had been collaborating with them for almost a year, was responsible for this, he joined forces with some of his buddies on his Doggy, Bunny, Zizzy, and Pony to stop Mr. P from further harming and destabilizing the whole globe.
Cast and characters
Major
- Egeus Flores as Miguel: He is a quiet but happy adult who works for a corporation that assists in solving crimes and difficulties. He is the primary character in the television show because he gets into strange adventures all around the city while trying to find out what happened to his companions who went missing. He is shown as being valiant and protective of his sole survivors throughout the series, treating them like "babies" and shielding them from any danger that may come their way.
- Minoo Spencer as Pony: He is a kind male pony that treats everyone with respect and kindness. He has a romantic connection with Zizzy, and they frequently act as a couple. When he initially moved to the city as a child, he wanted to make friends but was turned away because of his spectacles. He first met Zizzy and the others before the outbreak.
- Alexander Stephens as George Piggy (seasons 1 and 2): He is the youngest member of the Piggy Family, who is the only member to not get infected. His family drank three potions that Mr. P had provided, and after doing so, they changed into a zombie-like creatures and began assaulting everybody in his path. Additionally, he is depicted as having a minimal function in the video game, in contrast to his important involvement during the whole third season.
- Kameko James as Mr. P: He was known by the pig to receive a lot of abuse from others around him while being a friendly but odd person to everyone. Even as an adult, he continues to be bullied by the individuals he believed to be his loved ones, just as he was in school. After his wife was hurt in a vehicle accident, he made the decision to handle the situation on his own rather than visiting a hospital, where he conducted several tests and the remedy turned contagious. He made the decision to leave the city when it was infected, save for a few people and himself, believing that no one still cared about him. Later, he becomes melancholy and exhibits extreme sadness over the harm he had done.
- Sorin Shaw as Doggy (season 1; recurring season 2): He was Miguel's closest partners. Doggy made the decision to hide somewhere in the city where he had lived after the virus infected everyone including his pal. The remaining survivors of the virus were then met by him. Later, after going with Miguel into the forest, he was forced to drink a bottle of Substance - 128 by Pony and Willow, causing him to become infected.
- Cynthia Anderson as Bunny (season 1; recurring season 2): She is a bashful bunny girl who is well-known in the city. Despite her severe shyness, she already shows support for everyone. When she was younger, she frequently hung up with her pals, but once they all moved away from her to another place, she made the decision to stop, fearing that they might follow. Bunny was one of the five people that joined the group in the center of the city following the outbreak. Later, when the hospital was raided by an infected doctor that was appearing everywhere while Miguel was unconscious, Bunny got bitten by one, and she drink one of Mr. P's potions. Shortly after Miguel and the train had departed, she turned infected.
- Lauren Black as Zizzy: She was a girl as well, and according to most people, she was one of the greatest in the city. She lived next door to Miguel's house and was kind, cheerful, and content at the same time, but they were never seen together since Zizzy liked to hang out with other people. Pony was one of the few animals to survive the virus when Zizzy reunited him after it had spread. They had a strong relationship with one another before meeting the other members of the group, and they still do now. The two of them's connection is depicted in nearly every episode. Additionally, the connection is not at all depicted in the video game. She has two sisters as well, whom she attempted to take care of but failed, and who are now taken care of by other group members.
Minor
- Valentine Lee as Penny Piggy (season 1; recurring season 2); She is one of the members of the Pig family, which was initially featured in 1965 and is George Piggy's older sister. She frequently gets into mischief with his younger brother and hoped to achieve great popularity and success in the near future. Her family (except Georgie) made the decision to visit a hospital where they received three of Mr. P's potions after his wife gets sick. After she tested the supposed cure to Mrs. P's sickness, Penny turned infected along with her other family members (except Georgie) while she was one of the many people infected by the virus.
- Caitlin Murray as Mother: She has two children, George and Penny, both of whom she is the mother of two. In the event that others or young children need support, she is a kind and compassionate woman. Later, after she (along with Penny and Father except Georgie) tested Mr. P's supposed cure to his wife's sickness, she was one of the infected of Lucella.
- Joshua Cooper as Father: As a husband, he is the father of the Piggy Family. Later, after he (along with Penny and Mother except Georgie) tested Mr. P's supposed cure to his wife's sickness, he was one of the infected of Lucella.
- Sandra Perry as Grandmother: She worked at a shop in the midst of the city as the grandmother of two children. She ran a highly successful store, which plays a significant part in the show. The grandma in the anime is depicted as being loving, caring, and polite to everyone around her. When children get frightened or disturbed about anything, she is able to soothe them. She had a tiny house that was distant from the city that she also owned, but it was subsequently discovered that his elderly mother, who had passed away long before the events, had actually owned the property and had given it to her, even though she had no desire to live there.
Guest cameos
Speaking roles
- Bethan Reid as Daisy: Before she moved out of the city to go someplace, she was formally Willow's closest friends. She contracted the infection and was put to death by authorities long before the issue was resolved.
- Lauren Crawford as Elly: She works for a firm named Elly Enterprises, which she founded based on his name and the concept for the store's name, back when she was starting up his new career as a method to provide more money for her family in the center of the city. She admitted having a sister by the name of Rhiannon.
- Lawrence Brooks as Rash: He is a raccoon who was once incarcerated but got infected after Willow escapes from prison.
- Ben Hall as Tigry: He's a close buddy of Rash. He and his mother used to not care about him when he was younger, as a result, he ran away from home and joins the military. After accidentally killing a solider during a war, he deserted the military and joins the Silver Paw during the infection. In the series, he tries to find a cure to cure Rash.
- Lawrence Trelawney as : He is an elderly elephant who works. He appeared in the episode "Where My Grandma," when he accidentally terrified Zizzy. He came out as a teacher early on, but he left after hearing about the virus.
- Kathleen Kelly as Budgey: She is a woman who works in the city at a modest job. She made an appearance in the episode "Ringing In The New Year In A Different Way," in which she approaches Pony and Miguel while they are seated on a bench. She then unintentionally passes for a man despite having told them she was a woman. Despite the briefness of her camouflage, she admitted that she enjoyed listening to music anytime she felt down or unhappy. She also mentioned that she had previously worked at a company that made ice cream, but that she was forced to quit because of the continuing infection. She ultimately returned his ice cream shop with additional employees in the last episode, and as a consequence, she is revealed to be highly successful.
- Rune Jackson as Mimi: Shee was a scientist who lives in the Safe Place along with Giraffy.
- Virginia Rivera as Kitty: She is a cat that resembles a cat-like person, and she is one of the members of the Sliver Paw.
- Oliver Kim Kenneth as Kenneth: He is a 25-year man that works for a boat company. He is the only non-minor or major character that had revealed his real age.
Non-speaking roles
- Poley
- Giraffy
- Sgt. Monroe
- Soldier
Episodes
- Note: All of the episodes are directed by Luke O'Reilly
| Season | Episodes | Originally aired | Last aired |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 12 | January 4, 2023 | May 23, 2023 |
| 2 | 12 | September 15, 2023 | March 29, 2024 |
Season 1 (2022)
| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | House | Luke O'Reilly | Christopher Kennedy | January 4, 2023 |
| 2 | 2 | Station | Luke O'Reilly | Rayan Miguels | January 15, 2023 |
| 3 | 3 | Gallery | Henry Ward | Sandy Payne | February 6, 2023 |
| 4 | 4 | Forest | Luke O'Reilly | Oliver Hamilton | February 18, 2023 |
| 5 | 5 | School | Luke O'Reilly | Nicholas Bryant, Henry Ward | March 1, 2023 |
| 6 | 6 | Hospital | Luke O'Reilly | Freddie Bennet | March 15, 2023 |
| 7 | 7 | Metro | Luke O'Reilly | Joseph Bell | March 28, 2023 |
| 8 | 8 | Carnival | Luke O'Reilly | Tatiana Gray | April 8, 2023 |
| 9 | 9 | City | Luke O'Reilly | Euan Washington | April 14, 2023 |
| 10 | 10 | Mall | Luke O'Reilly | Jack Scott | April 29, 2023 |
| 11 | 11 | Outpost | Luke O'Reilly | Tatiana Gray | May 8, 2023 |
| 12 | 12 | Plant | Luke O'Reilly | Freddie Bennet | May 23, 2023 |
Season 2 (2023)
| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 13 | 1 | Alleys | Luke O'Reilly | Keith Wallace | September 15, 2023 |
| 14 | 2 | Store | Luke O'Reilly | Michael Ferguson | September 27, 2023 |
| 15 | 3 | Refinery | Luke O'Reilly | Tasha Powell | October 10, 2023 |
| 16 | 4 | The Safe Place | Luke O'Reilly | Thomas Armstrong | October 24, 2023 |
| 17 | 5 | Sewers | Luke O'Reilly | Molochai Gutierrez | November 13, 2023 |
| 18 | 6 | Factory | Luke O'Reilly | Belgarath Bennett | November 29, 2023 |
| 19 | 7 | Port | Luke O'Reilly | Thomas Davis | December 17, 2023 |
| 20 | 8 | Ship | Luke O'Reilly | Jack Lawrence | December 30, 2023 |
| 21 | 9 | Docks | Luke O'Reilly | Owen Lee | January 17, 2023 |
| 22 | 10 | Temple | Luke O'Reilly | Ali Taylor | February 14, 2023 |
| 23 | 11 | Camp | Luke O'Reilly | Tatiana Gray | February 28, 2023 |
| 24 | 12 | Lab | Luke O'Reilly | Freddie Bennet | March 29, 2024 |
Production
- Additional production information and episode-specific content can be found at each episode's article.
Development
Luke O'Reilly discovered about the video game Piggy for the first time during its initial stages of development. Piggy was created and developed by Minitoon. Luke reported he'd been playing for "more than an hour" and was immediately addicted. He finished virtually every one of the levels in the game before the end of the entire week. Luke had been working by an animation studio for a decade and a half at the time, and he was planning on remaining there for another five. However, after the video game, he took some time stepping away from his employment to work on a pitch for a project based on the Piggy video game, which had gained a lot of popularity. In March 2020, Luke O'Reilly and Arthur Fisher teamed together to develop a television series based on the video game. One of their first objectives was to submit the idea to Bony Pictures Animations, nevertheless this was quickly abandoned in favor of submitting the concept to Bloxflix. But because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the pitch had to be postponed, giving them more opportunity to create the series. In the early stages of creation, Arthur presumably "had plans to" produce a feature picture rather than a television series. However, Arther eventually realized that a series would much enhance the pacing and gave up on the concept.
The producers at the studio were completely unfamiliar with the video game when Arther and Luke offered the concept to them a few months later, in June 2020, but they nonetheless approved of the idea to make an animated television series. As part of a significant agreement between the businesses of Ponchokings Animation and Bloxflix Productions, the television series based on the video game was formally revealed on June 29 of the same month. It was described as "in the works" and had a release date set for the next two years. A month later, it was revealed that Luke O'Reilly would be helming all of the episodes of the show, while Arthur would serve as both the show's producer and writer. Initially, Luke stated that he only was planning on directing a handful of episodes, but after receiving admiration for his work on many other shows, he was appointed to handle all of the directorial responsibilities. Luke had intended to have Tara Adams write almost all of the episodes, but owing to time limitations those plans were put on hold and the writer subsequently left. With the rest of the writers, including Michael Ferguson, Nicholas Bryant, Henry Ward, and Euan Washington, being confirmed a month later, it was reported in October 2020 that writer Christopher Kennedy was just one of the "many" chosen as the writers and the writer for the first episode. Although they were all unaware of the video game, Luke taught them how it operated, and as a result, writing for the program "became easy" for the writers.
It was announced in December 2020 that Sheary Gonzalez would serve as the series' executive producer. She had contributed to several television shows prior to the series. Luke and Arther experienced several changes throughout the series, which was their first horror drama series. Some of these adjustments were reportedly significant and presented a problem for the authors. Joseph Bell was named as the writer for "an episode" in January 2021, however it was subsequently discovered that there will really be ten whole episodes the next month. The first episode's official title was revealed to be "Good Life," and Luke promised that the following one "would be a secret from the others." Piggy was originally intended to be a horror drama when the show was in its early stages of development. Luke had plans to change the tone a little so that kids could watch it as well, in case they discovered they liked it, but Arther wanted the tone to fit both audiences while keeping the show unnerving for young viewers. According to plans that were announced on May 9, 2021, the release date for the first two episodes of the show would be released sometimes, in early January 2022. Later, the series' debut was modified to a single episode because Luke wanted the episodes to broadcast at various times while still giving people a chance to "think" about what might happen next.
According to details revealed in July 2021, the series was set to revolve around just the first act of the video game. However, after Chapter: Two, which was published in September on the video game of the same name and had been announced by the creator a few months previously, plans were adjusted to allow for the production of more episodes in the near future. Luke had a tight working relationship with the other video game developers throughout the late development of the series. These developers also had some of their games made into series, although they were less long-lasting as Piggy. When he spoke with them, Luke discovered that the game's creators had originally intended for their game to be longer than they desired, so that the series could cover everything with a few changes. However, because the production company was aiming for shorter episodes, the game creators accepted their idea and later changed their plans. Luke subsequently said that he believed the television show should have lasted longer in order to cover everything in the video game. Arther, who was working on the game at the same time as the television show, also agreed, saying that he wanted to "take some time." The first and second episodes were announced on December 2, 2021, and it was subsequently reported that the second episode would be titled "The Disappearance" and would debut on January 4, 2022, and February 9, 2022, respectively. The majority of the writers, including Rayan Miguels, Freddie Bennet, Jack Scott, Oliver Hamilton, Tatiana Gray, and Keith Wallace, worked on the season during the next two months before its release. A second season was then approved before the series's debut and begin production on April 1, 2022, following the premiere of the first season. A third season, which was said to be the series' last, was reportedly in production as of May 21, 2022.
Casting
By October 2020, casting for the television series had begun. Thomas and Luke sought actors that "fit beautifully" in the video game and were exceptionally competent enough to create "good performance" for the television series when picking their performances for each episode. Egeus Flores was officially announced as the series' lead actor on January 1, 2021 (New Year's Day), whereas Alexander Stephens' casting as George was made public following that month. The fact that Flores was "way too good" to be on the show and that Luke had lately viewed videos of him singing and acting for other shows in the past contributed to some of his performance. Luke recalls noting that the voice was "great and perfect," but he was a little concerned about the acting's direction because the lead role was supposed to be a fearless and laid-back individual, in which Flores responded that "he would do good." Beginning from February to March 2021, a large number of actors were chosen for the series and cast in the parts of Doggy and Pony, while the remaining actors were cast in a "unclosed call" and some of them had their inclusion in the show verified by the director.
The first woman to be cast for the television series was made public on March 19, 2021, when Cynthia Anderson, who had been working on a feature film and a television series, was chosen as Bunny. This was the first time a woman has been announced for a role in an overwhelmingly male-dominated ensemble. Luke had a conversation with Cynthia regarding whether or not she wanted to pick up the position because of her strong acting, and he concurred. Minoo Spencer was selected in a "unclosed call" for the role of Mr. P, the film's villain, in May. However, actress Kameko James, who had already been named as the actor portraying the major antagonist, ultimately won the part of Pony. DDuring the casting call, Minoo remembers intending to choose Pony as his actor, but changed his mind and chose Mr.P instead because he felt like his acting fit with the character's charm and evolution while still providing the role a fresh voice. However, after hearing the actor's voice, Luke decided that the role would be better portrayed by someone else. Furthermore, Thomas agreed that the actor was cast as Pony even though Thomas believed the performance was strong. Pony was defined as being friendly but overly lucky in the initial casting call, which was dated January 2021. Thomas also thought the acting was too "pitched up." Furthermore, it was claimed that the Mr. P character was "mean and sounded like evil," but thanks to James' performance, which aimed for a deeper, darker tone than the original version, his part for the character was approved and the villain's general tone was transformed.
Valentine Lee and Lauren Black, who will be portraying Zizzy and PennyPig, respectively, were confirmed on May 9 and May 11. It was originally planned for Valentine Lee to have a "extremely minor" role in the series, only showing up in flashbacks from Miguel or George Piggy's mind. However, because Luke thought Valentine was "too cute and sweet," the plan to have her play a major role in the series' opening episode was changed. Sorin Shaw was identified as playing the part of Doggy on July 21, 2021, with the others continuing to appear in recurrent roles. Before the start of the series, it was revealed that Harry Bell and Cynthia Anderson would be lending their voices to some "notable" guest roles in the video game. Louis Gonzales, Kyle Patel, Rotter Tucker, Arthur Cook, Hugo Blaese, Samuel Ellis, Hamza Dixon, and Bernard Willis were chosen to play the roles of the zombie-like creatures.
The first group of actors was cast on December 21, 2022, whereas the second and final groups were cast on different dates. Notably, casting news for Hamza Dixon and Bernard Willis was made public on January 5, 2022, more than a month before "House" was set to premiere. Before picking the actors, Luke and Thomas had went on to visit the actors's house and explained them on their acting, before picking them as the roles. Prior to choosing the performers, Luke and Thomas had visited the candidates' homes and given them acting tips. William Cunningham was cast on June 21, 2022, as Willow, the secondary antagonist for the second season. Willow is a significant antagonist in the video game, although his part was considerably less than fans had anticipated.
Writing
Piggy was written by Musa Turner, Thomas Payne, and Kalle Burns. Luke and Thomas sought out "writers that understand" the medium and the concept of a video game when they started the early stages of development to ensure that the script for the finished product wasn't cringe-worthy or subpar. They claimed that they wanted to make the television show "respectful" of the video game while still introducing some moderate to significant changes and educating new viewers on both the show and the game. In order to understand how adapting video games for the screen worked, Luke looks at other series that were based on other video games before choosing the writers. Thomas was reportedly going to be hired to pen at least one episode of the first season by July 2020, one month after the show was given the go-ahead. Between June through October of the same year, numerous writers were selected for the series, including Christopher Kennedy, Sandy Payne, and Jack Scott; the remaining writers were made known at a later date. Luke and Thomas requested the writers to play certain sections of the video game before instructing them to write the screenplays, so they could get a feel for how the game functions. Some of the authors were already invested in the game they were playing, with one of them, Joseph Bell, claiming to have done so within the first hour.
By December 2020, the first three episodes of the series had already started to be written. Christopher, it has been stated, was assigned to pen the premiere. When presenting the idea, Luke and Thomas intended the series to fit into the horror comedic tone, and the notion was maintained throughout the series' development. When trying to think of fresh concepts that may fit into the series, several of the authors started to struggle during the writing process. To assist them, Luke gave the go-ahead to establish a new meeting that was hosted each and every week by the series' producers and directors. During this meeting, they would discuss some of the concepts from the video game and how to work them into the series. Early on, it was planned for Piggy to be a horror series, and the screenplay had a few jump scares. However, Luke asked the writers to eliminate the most of the jump scares sincew he felt they would damage the series and frighten both adults and children. In spite of this, the series included just one jump scare. In the video game, the lead character requested help in locating a youngster named Georgie Piggy who had gone missing for an unspecified period of time. The protagonist would receive a blow to the head and be sent into the kids' room. However, in the series, Georgie was changed to just George, and the plot shifted to Miguel looking for George, who was now an adult, and his family everywhere. As one of his options, he decides to go into a lost house, where someone reported hearing screams coming from inside. The series' concept was revised, thanks in part to Rayan Miguels, who also gave the show a more spooky feel. Luke said that the alteration was made because they wanted the show to be more than "just a comedy horror," adding that they also wanted it to be a "thriller," offering viewers a scenario when they would be startled, but that never happened.
Thomas explained that the modification needed to be made because he wanted the series to have some logic and that the character of George being sent to a residence and just absent from it didn't work. Luke rewrote the original idea in with the fears that the alterations would be criticized by the audience; however, he was astonished to discover that they were received favorably. The characters in the series use the station and the city to depict their near-death experiences, playing important roles in the series. The first three episodes play an essential role in the series and signify an important change because they introduce virtually all of the characters and provide adequate information about the fundamental narrative. However, some of those who wrote borrowed Chapter: Two from the video game and added it to the series, which also contained the introduction of the second villain Wolf, while creating the subsequent episodes. Writer Keith Wallace, who at the time was working on a few episodes for the show and would later become the writer for the first episode of the second season, came up with the concept of giving Miguel and George a romantic relationship. The first episode of the television series, which was entirely devoted to "peace" and "a good life," was intended to convey both melancholy and a feeling of optimism, according to Keith Wallace, who said that the computer game was already heavily centered on the horror. All of the series' authors aimed to infuse each character with individuality and charm while creating them. As a result, in order to allow for some growth, the episodes were typically approximately 50 minutes long. One of them, in the early days of the game, was the notion of giving Pony and Zizzy a romantic relationship, which was motivated by 2020 memes.
In the video game, Mr. P was a millionaire, but in the television series, he had a regular life with his parents and was tormented. Luke and Thomas claimed that the change was made because the writers wanted to give the show a "realistic turn" rather than focus on making it "very popular." The plot in which Mr. P tries to cure his wife was kept, but with a change that removed Bunny and Sheepy from the team and added a scene where his wife got into an extremely bad car crash, killing her for more than ten minutes while Mr. P was nonstop trying to make the cure, despite her wife being dying. With the exception of the little Georige in the video game, the villain additionally gives the magical potion to the PennyPig family. But the subplot was altered for the television series so that everyone in the family now receives the potion. Luke felt that it made no sense at all to refuse George the potion, and Thomas agreed, therefore the scenario was changed. Even though some of the speech was utilized in the show, only a small portion of it was included, and all of it was from the first season because the second and third seasons aimed for a much harsher tone than the first. Since the majority of the series was produced during the COVID-19 epidemic, Luke believed that viewers, especially those who had played the computer game, would comprehend the origins of the virus. The characters in the series had several minor alterations, including the donning of masks to prevent exposure to the virus. Additionally, Thomas contributed some fresh information to the series, including information from the video game. Characters from the video game that weren't well-liked and were later introduced to the series include Memory.
Animation
The animation for the television series was handled by Ponchokings Animation. To show appreciation for the video game, Thomas and Luke decided early on that the animation should resemble the game in some manner. Thomas explained that the change in animation was made because they could create a better look, giving the series a more, much more horror sytle, as opposed to picking the art design that the video game went with. Nevertheless, later on they chose to go with a new art style instead. The art director for the series is Kenneth Griffin. The animators who worked on the animation claimed that they went back to the art design that they had been working on and drawing for the majority of the scenes, using computer animation, but for the scenes where all of the horror tones come in, they used 2-D animation to feel the characters' true feelings. They took the video game models for the background and then hand-drew the whole building before inserting it into the scene to create something that was both cartoony and realistic while yet looking like the game's model. In order to make the figures appear more like they are from a cartoon, Melissa Taylor, the animator who was working on them, said that it was quite challenging to create the characters. The animators had to draw inspiration from real-world examples of young children to create the character of PennyPig, who is depicted in the series as moving quickly and being overjoyed most of the time.
Music
Jacqueline Webb
Johann Cole
Johann Cole and Jacqueline Webb wrote and composed the soundtrack for the series. When Thomas was picking the composers, he wanted them to "redo the music," but to make it superior to the video game. Both Johann and Jacqueline participated in the game while composing the music, although they mostly listened to the game's "short themes"-heavy soundtrack. Johann allegedly told Thomas that, although the music was "wonderful," it was far from perfect and that it would be immensely helpful to rewrite it in a much more solemn tone. Thomas forced the two of them to listen to the song "Traveling Time" before they began working on the music, and they both found themselves crying as they worked. The first episode of the series concentrated on a significantly greater "accommodating and "at ease" tone. According to Johann, the first episode had to have that atmosphere because otherwise, if "the atmosphere was very serious even before the other episode began," it wouldn't be successful at all and make the episode more difficult to watch, especially starting with the subsequent episode. Several of the character-specific melodies were used, most notably Piggy's theme. Early on in the video game's growth and development, the theme tune from the children's program that served as the game's inspiration and basis was employed.
Johann decided to utilize the same tune as in its original form but with minor modifications to make it scarier and darker than the video game after listening to the themes. Grandmother's tune, Badgy's theme, and a few others were also featured in the series. A song called "Robloxian Anthem (The Great Strategy)" is played in the background of the fourth episode, "With The Group," but it is incredibly low-pitched and silent. Thomas said that everyone in the ensemble loves the song to such an extent that they desired to make it occur in the television series, but Luke felt that it would damage the general mood of the episode, so an alteration was made to the song. Webb claimed that the song was added because the show is based on a video game that was released on Roblox, but Thomas argued that this isn't the real reason. With some of the tracks appearing in the series that was utilized in the video game, the majority of the music is video game-inspired. Johann Cole and Jacqueline Web revised "Traveling Time" throughout the recording process, making it a more darker and more emotional song. Both of them were conscious of not disrespecting the individual who originally penned the song when they decided to stick with the original lyrics when composing the song. After the publication of the last episode, "Saving the World (Part Two)," the song was made available digitally on June 30, 2024. On December 9, 2022, the first season's soundtrack, Piggy: The First Soundtrack, was made available digitally. The second and third seasons' soundtracks, which were published on December 21, 2023 and July 9, 2024, respectively, were released at various times.
Even though the show has an apocalyptic horror drama vibe, some of the episodes have a strong musical element. Notably, one of the episodes, "Merry, Merry Virus," included a song in which Pony and Zizzy, along with the other characters, dance to Christmas music to get into the holiday spirit despite the epidemic that is going on outside. In a different episode titled "Wish That I Had A Normal Life," Miguel expressed his deep sadness and desire to resume living a normal life via the use of a song. The song's development and naming, according to Johann, were motivated by the title. One of the most well-known episodes was named "Bonny? Following the preceding episode, "Bonny, Are You Okay?" focuses on Miguel's attempts to cope with the loss of Bunny and her passing. Johann Cole and Jacqueline Webb intended to provide emotive songs for the television series in the same way that they had done for other films while they were writing it. Both of them were going for a pretty ominous vibe when they chose the lyrics. Thomas and Luke said that they all praised and enjoyed the songs very much.
Release
The first episode of the show had their red carpet debut on January 4, 2023. The Roblox: The Feature-Film director John 'Blox' Madson, along with Michael Wells, Amun Wright, Claudia Lopez, and Joshua Walker, were among those who were invited to walk the red carpet. Madson was working on the movie based on the Roblox video game. In contrast to past series, the red carpet premiere was the first to include all of the series' writers and several of its animators. The first episode of the series' first season, titled "Good Life," was released on the streaming service Bloxflix the next day, on January 4; the first season featured ten episodes that were released monthly up until December 5.
The first episode of the second season debuted on September 15, 2023. Bloxflix Productions released the complete first season on DVD and digitally on December 30, 2023, following the conclusion of the first season. The second season's DVD releases followed on April 30 respectively.
Marketing
On September 2, 2020, the first concept art photos of George and Penny Piggy in their regular appearances from the series were posted online in celebration of Roblox's 14th anniversary. Additionally, a day later, Thomas announced on Twitter that something "will happen soon" when the first peek of George's house was presented. When there was talk of a teaser for the show in November, Luke, the creator of the series, said that the creators were "in the works" of making the first trailer for Piggy and that since the selection procedure was still ongoing and the creation of the animation was still in the beginning stages, the teaser would probably be released sometime within the next few months. The video game's voice actor, Rgeus Flores, anticipated that the television show will be "special" for players. During a sneak peek at the upcoming project for Bloxflix in December, a 3-second glance at the series was presented, including the finished animation sequence in which Miguel is seen fleeing through the woodland from an unidentified zombie-like entity. A one-minute teaser trailer for the series debuted on January 4, 2021. It featured sequences with George and Miguel, the town before the outbreak, Miguel searching for his friend, a flock of sick pigs, and other horror-themed elements. The animated television series trailer with the highest views after being released had over 45.0 million views in only 24 hours. Stephen Davis of Fox wrote: "This series, which is based on the video game of the same name, appears to have all the makings of a very good television show. We witnessed several effective horror scenes, and I enjoyed the scene in which Miguel is with George. One minute is all that is needed to provide us with sufficient details on how the series operates".
The first poster for the television series Piggy
The initial poster for the series, which included the mall from the video game and the series' title but lacked a release date, was made public online on January 10. Because they wanted to excite video game players, Luke and Thomas said they didn't want to announce a release date for the series just yet. The first image of Penny Piggy, George, Mother, and Father was unveiled in March 2021. It showed them seated at a dinner table, interacting with one another while consuming food. An further trailer was later hinted at when Christopher Kennedy said something extremely cool will be released soon a week later. After the premiere date for the series was established, Luke said they will release the second trailer, which they were already working on. Pony and Zizzy gave the public their first glimpse of one other in April, smiling and gazing into each other's eyes. More than 250,000 tweets were generated about the image after it went popular on Twitter, and every single one of them was focused on the notion of the two of them sharing a kiss. At the time, many memes were centered on the Zizzy X Pony memes that had just been released in 2020. Thomas and voice actors Lauren Black and Minoo Spencer, who played Zizzy and Pony, responded in jest by saying that it's probable that they'll kiss in the show. The series' core characters was seen attempting to deal with problems in the second trailer, which debuted on May 9, 2021. The official release date of the series was set for January 2022. More than 50 million people watched the trailer within 24 hours, and critics and video game fans praised it for its animation.
In June 2021, several books based on both the video game and the series were revealed. The series debuted its first glimpse of the fireworks on July 3, 2021, as part of the July 4th celebration, with each character seated next to the others and gazing up into the sky. As part of the marketing for the series, Roblox also revealed that a video game based on the show was in the works. The designs of various characters, including those for the home, playground, and school, were made public during the same month. Additionally, two ideas were made public and included illustrations of the Teacher and the Bunny. On August 1, 2021, viewers got their first glimpse of George and PennyPig as little children in a flashback. A second poster, which depicted the city in ruins as a result of the virus and gave viewers a glimpse of Grandma, who was hiding from the camera in the background, was made public the following day. On August 29, a clip from the episode "Good Life" that featured Mother and Father's initial appearances as well as the first glimpse of Miguel, who would subsequently appear in the footage, was posted. Fans of the video game gave the clip rave reviews for its tone, scripting, and animation when it was published for its nostalgic undertones. The third and final trailer for the program debuted on September 9, 2021, and it included the new horror tone of the show as well as scenes of George and the other characters attempting to deal with the virus. In under 24 hours, the trailer attracted 49.2 million viewers and got high accolades. A poster was made public on the same day. On September 19, the characters Miguel and George Piggy's fresh, revised rendering was made public. The 10 characters poster was released every day from December 11 to December 21, 2021.
Documentary series
- Main article: The Production of Piggy: The Series
A 20-minute television special showcasing the series' production broadcast after the debut of the first episode. A mini-television documentary series was announced on December 26, 2022, and it was set to feature the whole first season of Piggy's production. The 10-episode miniseries debuted on January 12 and finished on March 5 following its first installment. Thomas and Luke had produced more than 10,000 photos between the first stages of the project and the final outcome. A documentary series based on the making of each season was announced after it had concluded. The second season's production series, which aired from December 19, 2023, to January 28, 2024, had 10 episodes, which aired from July 19, 2024, to August 26, and the third and final season, which had 13 episodes in total; the last three of which were devoted to the making of the season finale.
Reception
Critical response
Piggy received near-universal critical acclaim from critics, audiences and fan of the video game. The praise were focused on the animation, directing, writing, humor, dark themes and its respect to the video game. Reviewers heavily praised its writing and storytelling in the first two episodes with most agreeing that the writing for the series was "shocking" and "dark", especially for an animated series. George Bradley of Fox, who saw the first two episodes, rated them a 10 out of 10 stars and wrote: "The thing that makes this most bizarre is that it is an animation series—and not just any animation series, either—but a unique one. You can immediately relate to these folks' emotions and issues, and you can comprehend how their everyday lives function and how everything in this one episode fits together. In addition to providing us with adequate information, the initial episodes made you feel bad for the characters as you anticipated the upcoming episodes, in which everything you had previously observed as tranquil had turned into a wasteland. That is not only excellent writing, but also a touching way to introduce a new chapter in the series". Annali Holmes wrote: "This series' script is already showing signs of being excellent, which makes it the ideal way to introduce someone to animation and this series. Due to the writing's abundance of charm, heart, and passion, seeing the village destroyed made me think that the virus had never existed. This is a great approach to convey emotional weight".
The action sequences and respect for the video game were well received by critics, however many of the episodes were thought to be a little bit too long; although Vishnu Gonzalez claimed that the pacing gave more time for the characters and the plot to be developed and even described the show as a "sort of mystery and thriller", but Malakai Matthews claimed that some first acts of several episodes were focusing more on the setting than on the story and plot. Critics heavily agreed on the seventh episode of the first season was the best out of the ten episodes. Lisa Kennedy wrote: "That one episode is far too dark, emotional, and occasionally even frightful. Everything is flawless, including the characters, script, narrative, animation, and graphics.". Overall, the series' first season earned overwhelmingly positive reviews from critics.
Lazer Hughes of CNN wrote: "Sometimes, there will be once a time when an series that is based on the video game become one of the best video game series I ever seen in my whole life". Critics praised the characters development and its dark themes. Barbara Smith in a statement wrote: "The characters in the series went through a lot—and I do mean a lot—of hardships, including near-death experiences and countless other difficult situations, which is the worst moment I want would never happen to me. The program also brought us some excellent character development for the main characters and all the pigs, who, despite everything they've been through, stick together and encourage one another to demonstrate to viewers that all you really need is a little love and support from your pals. Additionally, the topics in the majority of the episodes are not only fascinating but also heartfelt, wonderful for young children, and they convey important messages to adults who were children themselves and who, upon hearing those teachings, experienced sadness and empathy for the characters. Don't worry, but this show also has harsh issues for adults, so the messages are becoming stronger and better with each new episode". Niklaus Lopez wrote: "Everyone may watch and listen to this narrative at the same time since the subjects are great for everyone, and with excellent messaging, good direction, and, above all, good plot, you have yourself a wonderful sad, yet optimistic story". Elisha O'Reilly wrote that the themes were very dark, yet extremely amazing for adults to learn, but some of the critics stated that the message was way too scary and since the creators stated it was for both audiences, some of them agreed that the series wasn't for kids and only for adults.
Critics also praised the references to the video game and the television series with many agreeing that the references was "perfect timing" in some scenes. The allusions in the episode "The Lost Home," according to Taylor Ruiz, were specifically made by "some fans who want to catch some details". Notably, the storyline and concepts received less attention than the animation design, with almost all critics praising it as some of the greatest in the business's history. Benjamin Diaz wrote: "I really hope the animation company learned that sometimes you need to take a different path, not to create good storytelling, but to make the animation the best. The animation is fantastic, and the fact that it is still realistic and cool, but similar to video game design is truly shocking".
Audience response
The audience response to the television series had been critically acclaimed. The series had received extremely positive score on websites, such as IMDB.
Awards and nominations
Piggy