Dan Povenmire, along with his friend and colleague Jeff “Swampy” Marsh, created Phineas and Ferb back in 1993. A mere 15 years later it was picked up by the Disney Channel and has fast become one of their most popular shows, picked up bucket loads of awards, and been seen by an estimated 289 million people worldwide. As a result, it isn’t a surprise that the series is being revived for a bunch of new episodes that fans will finally get to watch this summer to relive the original’s magic.
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| Phineas and Ferb is one of Disney’s biggest hits (Credit: Disney). |
However, things might have been almost entirely different, as the series was initially pitched to Nickelodeon, who turned it down whilst it was in development. In an interview, Povenmire and Marsh confirmed they had pitched the series to Nickelodeon, who rejected it before Disney picked it up. Here is what the creators had to say about Nickelodeon rejecting Phineas and Ferb.
The series follows step-brothers Phineas and Ferb, who embark on various adventures during their summer vacation, while trying to keep their sister from interfering with their plans. Meanwhile, their pet platypus, Perry the Platypus, plots against evil Dr. Doofenshmirtz.
Phineas and Ferb started life as a simple doodle Dan Povenmire made during a visit to a restaurant. Povenmire fleshed it out into a concept for a full series with the help of Jeff “Swampy” Marsh. However, the duo’s early attempts to pitch the series to different networks, including Nickelodeon failed.
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| Credit: Disney. |
In an interview with
Animation World Network, Povenmire admitted that the series was turned down by two of the biggest children’s networks at the time, saying "I’ve got a pitch over at Cartoon Network. I’ll dust it back off and pitch it to them; if they say no, I’ll dust it off and pitch it to Nickelodeon." However, that did not discourage the duo from sticking to their original idea.
Povenmire explained that one of the main reasons he and Marsh did not give up on the idea was because it was a concept they had the most faith in, having originally conceived it during their time on the hit animated series The Simpsons, as a means to allow themselves to work together as writers.
In a separate interview, Povenmire explained the primary issues Nickelodeon and Cartoon Network had with the series, resulting in them turning it down. The co-creator revealed that most networks felt the series’ multiple ongoing storylines in a single episode were seen as too complex for younger viewers.
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| Credit: Disney. |
"We pitched it everywhere, absolutely everywhere you could possibly pitch it and a few extra places beyond that. It always got a good response, everybody like it," Povenmire said to
Skwigly, admitting that while networks had a positive reaction to their pitch, they found it slightly complicated.
Furthermore, the co-creator revealed that their pitch being rejected for several years benefitted them as it allowed the duo to evolve and mature over time. As a result, their focus changed after having their own children. Therefore, the duo tweaked their original pitch to make it more suitable for kids, which resulted in the final version impressing audiences across the globe.
Phineas and Ferb is streaming on Disney+.
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