‘Blues Brothers’ Primetime Animated Series in the Works

The Blues Brothers are getting ready to make a comeback.

A primetime animated comedy series based on the beloved Saturday Night Live sketch is in the works, The Hollywood Reporter has learned.

Dating back to 1976, the Blues Brothers originated as a musical sketch on SNL starring then-cast members Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi. The duo went onto release their first full-length album as the fictional band in 1978 and then The Blues Brothers film came out two years later. Following the death of Belushi in 1982, the group has welcomed a rotating slew of guest musicians for continued performances, most notably a 1988 world tour. John Goodman starred opposite Aykroyd for a 1998 film titled Blues Brothers 2000. Most recently, a musical adaptation called The Blues Brothers Revival premiered in Chicago in 2004.

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The series will follow Jake and Elwood Blues, along with the characters within their master blues band, as the boys take their act on the road and back to their native Chicago.

Each episode will feature a score and soundtrack curated with the soul, blues and R&B classics and hits performed by the Blues Brothers, as well as new performances made specifically for the show. There will also be special guest appearances from aspiring talent, treasured Blues legends and modern-day superstars.

Aykroyd will serve as a co-creator and executive producer on the new series, along with Belushi’s widow, Judy Belushi, and SNL writer Anne Beatts. Bento Box Entertainment (Bob’s Burgers) will produce the project. Bento Box’s Scott Greenberg and Joel Kuwahara also are attached as executive producers, along with Rehab Entertainment’s John W. Hyde and Blues Brothers manager Eric Gardner. 

The project, aimed at young adults, will be shopped to various TV platforms this month. A potential Blues Brothers primetime series was first floated in 2012, when Gardner came on board.

“It is such a privilege for us to be able to produce the work of the very same people who played such an instrumental role in creating one of the most iconic, multi-faceted comedy and music brands of all time,” Greenberg said in a statement. “Now we all have the rare opportunity to translate the timeless comic genius of Dan and John from live-action to animation, while offering an entirely new generation of Blues Brothers fans the chance to appreciate them.”

Aykroyd added: “It’s so great to accelerate Jake and Elwood at digital speed into the 21st Century via the outstanding creative group at Bento Box. The show will be the Blues Brothers living in America and utilizing all new technology to make and promote their own records, seek out and record new artists and avoid law enforcement — and all while fighting for truth, justice and a better breakfast sandwich.”

Bento Box is repped by WME and Ziffren Brittenham.