By Savannah Milam
It’s been 12 years since the world was first greeted by the foul-mouthed, talking teddy bear known as Ted. Nine years after the sequel film was released, we are finally getting another glance into the crazy lives of John Bennett and his beloved bear Ted through the newly released Peacock series, “ted.”
The new series is a prequel to the films, taking place in 1993 and featuring a 16-year-old John Bennet (Max Burkholder) as he navigates family and high school with his best pal (and bad influence) Ted.
The series is masterminded by Seth MacFarlane, who not only wrote and directed the original films, but also voiced Ted. He continues this legacy by writing, directing, executive producing, and voice acting in this latest installment of the Ted franchise.
The Tartan was invited to partake in a roundtable interview hosted by NBCUniversal with MacFarlane as well as writers, executive producers, and show runners Brad Walsh and Paul Corrigan.
Here are some questions we can answer about the latest addition to the Ted cinematic universe.
Why a series rather than another full length feature film?
So why didn’t these creators decide to make another “Ted” film instead? They wanted to focus more on the comedy rather than a full-length epic life changing story. By making a series of episodes, they could tell individual stories that focus on the characters and humor rather than a cohesive plot and dramatic climax.
Why was this the time to create the series?
According to Walsh and Corrigan, part of the reason was the technology available. It couldn’t have been done much sooner, because of the CGI aspect of the series. Unfortunately, a talking teddy bear like Ted doesn’t exist in the real world, so the filmmakers rely on CGI to make him come to life. With a full length movie, there are months available to them to work on adding Ted into the scenes, but with a series, that time is diminished drastically. Until recently, the technology made it difficult to create Ted in the shorter amount of time that they needed for this show.
How did they smoothly blend the physical sets and actors with an imaginary bear?
To create this seamless transition between the physical and the inanimate, MacFarlane’s production company Fuzzy Door created a software called “ViewScreen,” which allowed the camera operator to “see the bear” while shooting. They had to know where Ted would be in the frame of the shot even though he wasn’t actually there while they were filming.
MacFarlane said it helped the actors to visualize the bear on set. The cast really saw Ted in the room even though they were just talking to air.
Scenes also have better flow because all the lines are recorded live. Traditionally, when combining animation and live action, the voices of the animated characters are added in after all the live footage has been recorded. This creates a somewhat disjointed energy between the animated characters and the actors. With this show, it’s all done live to set the scene for the actors, which is why this show feels so cohesive. When all of these elements come together, they create a believable world.
What makes this show different from the original films?
The big move, according to Walsh and Corrigan, was to make this series a prequel. “There was this big chunk of their lives that was completely unexplored,” Walsh said. While they were locked into certain characters and a certain world, rewinding allowed them to make the characters a lot more innocent. They were able to explore what it would be like for them to encounter certain things for the first time, which provided a lot of stories that they might not have otherwise come up with.
Walsh and Corrigan go on to say that a film is typically a lonelier writing process. One or two writers typically work on the screenplay for several months or years. However, with this series, they were able to assemble a team of writers and hash out the stories, which was a more fun process.
What is something refreshing that audiences can look forward to?
Undoubtedly, one thing that audiences can look forward to is the amount of R-rated comedy. Don’t be mistaken, this show earns its TV-MA rating with its humor. This show balances jokes and comedy with heart and a grounded world centering the story around family: a topic relatable to audiences everywhere.
So, should you watch this show?
The short answer is duh, yes! Everyone who loves a good joke and a fun time should absolutely watch this series. MacFarlane, Walsh, and Corrigan, along with all the other incredibly talented people that made this show, created something funny and heart-warming at the same time.
“ted” is a seven episode series that premiered Jan. 11, streaming exclusively on Peacock.
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