HappyNest and Chuck E. Cheese Team Up for First-Ever Animated Holiday Special

June 17, 2025 at 08:30 AM EDT

LOS ANGELES, June 17, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- HappyNest Entertainment, a joint venture from UTA and Stampede Ventures, and Chuck E. Cheese, the number one global family entertainment fun center, is making its debut into animation with an original holiday special—“The Chuck E. Cheese Christmas Special”— which is currently in production with a release date scheduled for this holiday season.

This special brings together powerhouse creative talent in the animation world, with writing and producing partners Zac Moncrief and Jon Colton Barry (Phineas & Ferb, Be Cool Scooby-Doo!) as executive producers and co-writers. Oscar-nominated character designer and animator Bobby Pontillas, best known for Moana, Big Hero 6, and Zootopia, crafted the new character designs. Animation is being handled by Pixel Zoo Animation Studios out of Brisbane, Australia, with a team of artists and animators led by founder and CEO Paul Gillett, head of studio Sebastian Gonzalez, and director Steve Trenbirth (The Croods: Family Tree, The Jungle Book 2); working with Moncrief as co-director.

The voice cast includes Nathan Kress (iCarly) in the titular role of Chuck E. Cheese, alongside animation veteran voice actors Grey Griffin (Avatar: The Last Airbender), Nolan North (Uncharted), Kari Wahlgren (Rick & Morty), and Fred Tatasciore (Kung Fu Panda 2).

The special features an all-new original Christmas song co-written by Jon Colton Barry, Zac Moncrief, composer Ben Bromfield (Ginny & Georgia), and Barry’s father, Jeff Barry—a Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee behind timeless hits like “I’m a Believer” for the Monkees, “Sugar Sugar” for the Archies and “Christmas (Baby Please Come Home”) popularized by Mariah Carey and Michael Buble.

"This project brings together all the elements of a soon-to-be holiday classic – a beloved brand that has entertained generations, a world-class creative team, and a timeless story filled with heart and comedy. We’re proud to have our characters brought to life by an outstanding cast of voice talent, and an exceptional production team led by acclaimed animation veterans Zac, Jon, and Steve,” said Sadaf Cohen Muncy, SVP of Production and Development at HappyNest.

“This is more than just a TV special—it’s a milestone moment for the Chuck E. Cheese brand,” said Melissa McLeanas, VP of Global Media, Licensing & Entertainment at Chuck E. Cheese. “We’re entering the entertainment arena in a way that builds on our nostalgic legacy while charting a new future for our characters as a storytelling franchise.”

This latest venture marks a strategic content expansion for Chuck E. Cheese, just as the brand has been reimagined for the latest generation of kids, launched a licensing division that currently has over 30 licensee partners in retail, novelty gift, toys, books and more, and engages with over 40M kids and families every year across its nearly 600 fun centers around the world. This first-of-its-kind Chuck E. Cheese special is not just a seasonal moment—it’s the beginning of a long-term vision to transform beloved characters into a storytelling universe for today’s kids and families.

The announcement follows the launch of the CEC Media Network— a more than 3,500-screen DOOH platform driving over 2 billion impressions annually, offering distribution partners a turnkey marketing channel across digital and in-store touchpoints. Chuck E. Cheese has over one billion lifetime visitors to its family entertainment centers through its 48-year legacy and continues to be a multi-generation appealing brand.

HappyNest is an independent, franchise-first kids and family entertainment media company that forms strategic partnerships with best-in-class talent to create and produce the next big kids franchises across diverse content verticals. Recently, HappyNest announced Paris and Pups, a kids' animated series with Paris Hilton’s 11:11 Media and 9 Story Media Group (a subsidiary of Scholastic Media) that is inspired by Hilton’s real-life pets. The project showcases HappyNest’s full capabilities as a creative engine for world-building, storytelling and franchise development.

Jon Colton Barry is an Emmy Award–winning Executive Producer, Head Writer/Story Editor, Songwriter, Commercial Artist, Playwright, and Creative Consultant. He has worked across a wide range of mediums, including television, film, animation, sketch comedy, music, and theater. JCB played key creative roles in such hit and critically acclaimed series as Phineas and Ferb, Be Cool, Scooby-Doo!, and LEGO City Adventures, earning him additional Emmy and Annie Award nominations along the way.

Zac Moncrief is an Annie Award winner and Emmy-nominated Executive Producer, Writer, Director, Storyboard Artist, and Songwriter, known for his work on some of the most iconic and beloved animated series of the last two decades. His credits include Phineas and Ferb, Family Guy, Fairly OddParents, Be Cool, Scooby-Doo!, Brickleberry, Dora the Explorer, Lilo & Stitch, and LEGO: Hidden Side!, among others. Most recently, he served as Co-Executive Producer on the 2024 Annie Award–winning series Ghee Happy, and has spent the past year-plus developing new animated content with Netflix. A graduate of CalArts, Zac has contributed to all genres of animation, from preschool to primetime, and continues to bring bold, character-driven storytelling to screens worldwide.

About HappyNest

HappyNest is an independent, franchise-first kids and family entertainment media company that forms strategic partnerships with best-in-class talent to create and produce the next big kids franchises. HappyNest incubates and funds new, original IP for kids and families to engage with across diverse media verticals. The company is a joint venture between talent agency UTA, representing a stable of award-winning, legendary creators, as well as the next generation of rising stars, Stampede Ventures, and co-founded by Chris Bosco and Anna Berthold-Zuk.

About Chuck E. Cheese

Chuck E. Cheese is the place where half a million happy birthdays are celebrated every year with a mission to create positive, lifelong memories for families through fun, food and play. For over 48 years, Chuck E. Cheese has been the place Where A Kid Can Be A Kid®, and it continues to set the standard for family entertainment through interactive experiences, exciting arcade games and its beloved Chuck E. Cheese character. The global licensing, media, and entertainment division manages the company's strategic partnerships and development of the signature Chuck E. Cheese intellectual property, including licensed consumer products and original content for online streaming channels, music, video games and more.

About Pixel Zoo Animation Studios

Australia’s Pixel Zoo Animation Studios is a lead service provider of world-class animation for clients around the globe. The Brisbane-based independent studio whose parent company is MGA Studios, is known for its robust pipeline built to accommodate a wide range of styles and project scopes resulting in stunning visual quality kids and family entertainment for a variety of clients around the globe such as Hasbro, MGA Entertainment, Spin Master, eOne and Moonbug Entertainment. The studio recently expanded with launch of Pixel Labs, a new creative content arm of the company which is developing original content, establishing new co-production deals and optioning children’s books and graphic novels for film, television series, and digital and YouTube.

Media Contacts:

HappyNest

Tiffany Wagner; twagner@mprm.com

Chuck E. Cheese

Alejandra Brady; Alejandra.brady@cecentertainment.com

Photos accompanying this announcement are available at:
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