One of YouTube‘s major success stories is getting a brand new look now that Collective Digital Studio and Lucas Cruikshank have partnered to relaunch the Fred YouTube channel as a family-friendly entertainment destination.
Cruikshank launched the channel in 2008, and within a year it was the first YouTube channel ever t reach 1 million subscribers. The popularity of his Fred character led to a 2010 TV movie for Nickelodeon, Fred: The Movie, which captured 7.6 million viewers. Cruikshank’s focus has returned to YouTube and the channel that started it all. However, the relaunch won’t focus solely on the Fred character. CDS and Cruikshank are opening the 2.3 million subscriber channel to submissions from fans and as a breeding ground for other tween-friendly fare.
“Think of this as an expansion on the original FRED Channel, with the same spirit of irreverence, and a really talented group of new kids creating cool stuff,” Cruikshank said in a press release. “Plus we’ll be creating opportunities for fans to upload their own content. Fred Figglehorn will make the occasional appearance and so will I.”
Cruikshank and CDS shared a new video outlining the revamped channel.
“The genius of FRED is its wide appeal to a broad audience—kids, tweens, teens, and young millennials,” said Gary Binkow, Chief Content Officer at Collective Digital Studio, via a press release. “We want to reach a new generation of fans and content creators, and we believe we have the opportunity to create YouTube’s first original tween and family entertainment destination with a mix of programming that will include animation, sketch comedy, game shows, a puppet show, and more.”
Screengrab via Fred/YouTube