Wondery’s kids and family podcast division has partnered with entertainment company Dr. Seuss Enterprises to adapt its IP into audio through an upcoming slate of podcasts, the network has announced.
The first podcast to lead the new content slate will be The Cat in The Hat Cast, based on the best-selling book The Cat in The Hat. The series, which is premiering 18 September exclusively on Wondery+ and on Wondery Kids+ on Apple Podcasts, features the iconic book character in a variety-show style podcast with musical numbers, sketches, and more.
“The works of Dr. Seuss have resonated with readers of all ages for generations, and the books promote the importance of staying curious and using your imagination,” said Dr. Seuss Enterprises president and CEO Susan Brandt. “Wondery Kids & Family has an incredible vision for how to bring to life our characters and stories in podcasting form.”
“We believe this collaboration not only builds upon Dr. Seuss’s incredible legacy but also plays a key part of our bigger entertainment strategy for the Dr. Seuss franchise.”
In addition to The Cat in The Hat Cast, Wondery says that another series inspired by the works of Dr. Seuss will also be announced “in the coming weeks”. The podcasts are aimed at children aged 3 and up as the network’s Kids and Family podcast division continues to invest in podcasts for this demographic with shows like science podcast Wow in the World, weekly podcast Little Stories Everywhere, and more.
Similarly, a number of other companies and networks are investing in the kids podcast space including Disney, which recently announced a Frozen 2 podcast sequel and Audible which partnered with Nickelodeon to release an official companion podcast to its 90s horror anthology series Are You Afraid of The Dark?.
“This deal with Dr. Seuss Enterprises is a milestone moment in establishing Wondery Kids & Family as the premiere destination for engaging family content,” said Wondery head of franchise development Nicole Blake. “Both Wondery Kids & Family and Dr. Seuss are all about unlocking kids' curiosity, imagination and wonder.”
“This is truly a natural fit and we are looking forward to creating an array of programming that entertains and inspires the minds of tomorrow.”
According to Edison Research’s Kids Podcast Listener Report, podcasts are growing in popularity within this demographic as 29% of survey respondents aged 6-12 have listened to one in the past month and 25% of them were listening nearly every day. This is 1% higher than listeners aged 13+ who listen to podcasts every day (Edison Research’s Share of Ear report).
Dr. Seuss enterprises has partnered with a number of other industry heavyweights to transform its book character franchise across varying entertainment formats. This includes entertainment partnerships with Warner Animation Group, Netflix, and Amazon Prime Video.
