Exclusive Interview: Doomsday Brothers Insights with Willem Wennekers

Doomsday Brothers is a show that quietly premiered on the relatively new Adult Swim Canada channel in late September 2020. A time when Canada was experiencing its own doomsday potential. Despite the obvious irony in that, there has been a significant drought of information regarding Doomsday Brothers.

In truth, it caused us here at Bubbleblabber to release some misinformation regarding episode counts and show titles. A misfortune that was remedied thanks to Doomsday Brothers co-creator and showrunner Willem Wennekers personally reaching out. Because that’s just how things are in Canada.

Thanks to a mutual determination to promote and explore this series, we now have our first exclusive interview with Willem Wennekers. Giving us a chance to get some background information on Doomsday Brothers through his friendly enthusiasm for the series.

Here is what Willem Wennekers had to share:

Parts of this interview have been edited for clarity purposes.

Jesse Bereta: Doomsday Brothers! The more I watch it, the more I like it. It keeps getting better. Do you want to update us with the origin story of how it all came together?  

Willem Wennekers: Sure! Well, like any show it was a bit of a circuitous route. I was working in development at Portfolio Entertainment after having finished three seasons of Fugget About It at 9 Story (Productions). 

One day a project came to us from N12 Productions in Quebec. It was a very early version of Doomsday Brothers. They had Corus (Entertainment) attached as a broadcaster and were looking for a studio. An animation studio to animate the show. They partnered with Portfolio, and because I had the experience showrunning in adult animation, that was enough to ask me to become the showrunner and help develop the show.  

I guess it was about early-2018, we started developing the show along with N12 Productions and got to the version of the show that exists now. I think we started developing in January, and by October we had finished development and written a couple of scripts. And we were lucky enough to get a green light and began production.

JB: You did mention Fugget About It. The show you worked on in the mid-2000s. Completely different show from Doomsday Brothers. Was it quite an adjustment for you?

WW: In general, adult animation is kind of my sweet spot. Of course, Fugget About It is all stand-alone episodes. It’s a very broad kind of comedy and very satirical.  Doomsday Brothers… because the landscape had changed with streaming, driving a lot of the decisions that got made production-wise. They wanted to do a show with a bit more of an arc than Fugget About It.  

So, that was an interesting challenge for me. Developing a show where we could have an arc that is always throughout all of the episodes but also that each episode works as a stand-alone. If you’re dropping into the season mid-way, you still have a general idea of what the show is and where you are.  

Fugget About It, for me, was celebrating my love of mob movies and the films of Martin Scorsese and Francis Coppola.  Doomsday Brothers, the original idea was: What if two survivalists had been raised their entire lives to prep for the apocalypse. Never really believing an apocalypse would happen. And boom, an apocalypse happens. For me, it was a chance to explore my love of the post-apocalyptic genre. I grew up watching movies like A Boy and His Dog, the Mad Max series, and stuff like Logan’s Run. This was a chance to dive into a weird world like that and explore the tropes of that genre. See where we could find some comedy; also find a bit of humanity there.

JB: Talking about the overall arc of the show. It is kind of structured like a 90s superhero cartoon, where there are repeating villains and ongoing plots, but each episode stands on its own. Was that valuable to you when structuring the show?

WW: Yeah, it was. In fact, it was a bit of a challenge to service a series arc while making episodes that could stand-alone. I think the solution was to have a very soft arc that gains momentum as the season goes on. The first half of the season, we are getting to know the characters, we’re getting to know the world. With the new episodes premiering on Sunday, you are going to see that arc gaining momentum. Until the last few episodes of the season where it is going to be focusing on the overall arc of the show. It is going to be a little more serialized towards the last few episodes.

JB: Honestly, that is quite exciting for me. 

WW: Yeah, it is interesting that some of the questions that you have raised in the reviews, I think you will get answers for in these next nine episodes. I really don’t want to give any spoilers.

JB: Doomsday Brothers is the first Canadian show to premiere on Adult Swim Canada. How did that come about?

WW: Well, it’s an interesting thing. The production company that originated the show is located in Montreal. They had approached Teletoon la Nuit to greenlight the show. Of course, there is no Teletoon at Night any more in English Canada. They shifted, – Corus could speak to it more on what the motivations were – they basically took Teletoon at Night and licenced Adult Swim to create Adult Swim Canada. For a show like this, which had to appeal to a Quebec market and an English market, Adult Swim Canada was the only choice for Corus to air the show.

I should probably mention, that one of the interesting challenges of producing this show is that we produce the show simultaneously in English and French. Usually, you would produce it in one language and just go ahead and dub it into the other language.  

Because of the way that this show is structured with Teletoon at Night and Adult Swim Canada. We have to write the scripts in English. Then they would be translated into French by our French coproduction partners. Then they would get recorded in French. Then we would get the recording of the episodes that were in French and have to match the timing of all the lines in English. Once we’re done the English lines and Quebec lines that match up timing-wise then we are able to do one animation pass for both languages. I know it did involve going in and doing a little bit a zhooshing of the lip flaps to even things out.  

It was an interesting challenge when you’re not only trying to make a fun and dynamic show, but you also have to make a show that fits the timing of something that has been established in French. That was an enormous learning curve for me personally, and I bet for our voice director and team. But the gang really pulled it together and found a way to make this crazy process work. 

In fact, early in the development process Portfolio contacted a dubbing specialist at – I can’t remember which studio. But basically, somebody that for a living does dubbing on shows. And they said to him, “here’s our plan. We are going to record in French, match the English, and then animate. Do you see any pitfalls in this?” And they said, “yeah, we do, you shouldn’t do it that way. That’s the scariest way to do it.” But we went ahead and did it anyway and it worked out really well. After a couple of stumbles at the start, where you are figuring out how it all works, we got it to be a well-oiled machine by the end.

JB: That is quite a unique way of doing things around adult animation. And all of the cast is different for the French version or is there a bilingual cast?

WW: No, it’s different. Actually, all of the cast members in Quebec are legitimate stars in Quebec. You know they have a star system there. It’s like literally a cast of celebrities doing the show in Quebec. And for the English side, we managed to gather a group of some of the best voice talents working in English Canada. All of whom are very good at stuff like dubbing and matching. It is a completely different cast on each side, although it is the same show with the same jokes, more or less.  

By the time the show was greenlit, we had established character designs. But once they cast the French celebrities, in order to make it appeal in the Quebec market, we revised the designs to resemble the French cast members. 

When the French audience watches it, they recognize these stars in animated form. Now they are not playing themselves as celebrities, obviously. They are playing the characters in character. But it is kind of fun for the Quebec audience to see some of their favourite celebrities being mutated and getting into crazy adventures in the wasteland.

JB: How do you find the reception for the French side versus the English side?

WW: It’s funny because we’re still in production. We’re still putting together the last few episodes. So, I haven’t heard a lot. Other than our Quebec producer seems very pleased with the reception.  

JB: Since this is the first Canadian show to premiere on Adult Swim Canada, do you feel like there is more growth and opportunities for adult animation in Canada? Right now, we have shows like Corner Gas Animated and Trailer Park BoysBut with Covid-19 there is a push for animation in the market.  

WW: Yeah, that’s interesting because back when we were developing Fugget About It, that show was an anomaly for animation in Canada. Because there just were not any adult animation shows at the time. Since then, I think adult animation has gained a lot of legitimacy on audiences and there is a bigger demand for it. Especially with places like Netflix that have made quite a commitment to adult animation. And obviously, the amazing things coming out of Adult Swim in the States. 

There is definitely more of a market for it. The thinking used to be that adult animation would be difficult to do in Canada because it is tricky to sell internationally. But those barriers are starting to break down because of this demand. 

I personally think that there is more opportunity for adult animation. Especially for Adult Swim Canada, we have loads of talented people here, amazing studios. There is no reason why more shows couldn’t get to air.

JB: On mentioning international markets, most of our readership is in America. Is there any chance of an American release of Doomsday Brothers?

WW: Yeah, I know that the sales team at Portfolio is working very hard to get an American sale. I don’t know the sort of ins-and-outs of how it works. 

But when you got a new show like this – before we went to air, it is tricky to sell because people want to see what the show looks like. Now that we have almost a full season ready, I am sure that they will be able to find a home for it in the States.

JB: The second part of season one of Doomsday Brothers premieres on Sunday. Are you feeling better compared to this next group of releases compared to when it first hit the air?

WW: You know what? I was really excited for the first nine to come to air. The reception that I can see has been pretty good. And the broadcaster seems to be happy with the show. So, I am just excited to get more episodes out there. To continue telling the story of these characters that I have fallen in love with over the last couple of years.

JB: One of my favourite episodes so far was “Flowers for Chudley” which involved Dwayne getting addicted Johnny’s tears and Chudley the Dog hooking up with Ana. Really mature themes and really pushing the boundaries. Are we going to see more of that?

WW: Definitely. When we were in development for the show, we had a few conversations with adult animation producers from down in the States. That and through our own research, we came to realize that the key to adult animation isn’t so much the dirty and edgy jokes, which of course I absolutely love to do. But really, where kids’ animation tends to be about characters that go through an experience and learn something from the experience, adult animation tends to be more based around a group of characters that all have their individual dysfunctions. And through the show, you kind of examine those dysfunctions. In the second half of the season, you are going to see some more of that. We are going to dig into the neurosis that Gabe has. Some of the interplay between the characters in the town and their relationships. That is where the show will be going and if we are lucky enough to get more seasons. Digging into these characters and their flaws and dysfunctions is the route that we want to go.

JB: Yeah, the show is full of unique characters from the villains to the townspeople. Vijay is slowly becoming one of my favourites. Do you have any personal favourites?

WW: That is always a tricky question cause I love all the characters and I love all of the actors that voice them. I still – I love Rafe and Gabe a lot. If I had to pick a favourite, I really love the character of Judith. I love the idea that the third lead on our show is a woman in her fifties. Which is not something that you see in adult animation a lot. I also just love the character. I love that she is basically Sarah Connor except locked in a bunker in a Waiting for Godot type situation. She is just trapped there with her memories and this irritating computer.  

JB: For sure, AENUS is one of the best characters as well. One of the big undertones of the show is Judith trying to reconnect with Gabe and Rafe. Is there going to be a payoff for that in season one? 

WW: There is going to be payoff for that. It might not be what you are expecting but there is going to be payoff. And of course, we have plans if we are lucky enough to get another season. I hope this isn’t a spoiler because it may happen, or it may not. But one of the things that we really want to do is get her out of that bunker and out into what is the wasteland. And finally let her have the wish that she has had for the first season and get out to reunite with her boys.

JB: Great. Other than that, is there any information on a possible season two? Are you working towards a season two?

WW: Well, we are at the point now where we are finishing up the first season. It is now kind of with the broadcaster to decide when they want to go forward with a second season. It is the perpetual thing about being in the industry where we kind of have to hurry up and wait. Once a decision gets made then we are going to go into high gear and start working on the second season. But the cocreators and myself have been noodling a few ideas because we want to be prepared for when that happens. So, we have a sort of loose game plan for season two, which we can solidify pretty quickly once a greenlight happens.

Doomsday Brothers airs on Sunday nights on Adult Swim Canada