HBO Max, Cartoon Network Order Animated Special From Sacha Baron Cohen, Mike Judge, And Greg Daniels

Sacha Baron Cohen, Mike Judge, Greg Daniels, and Michael Koman are teaming on Chelm: The Smartest Place on Earth, a family-oriented animated comedy special commissioned by HBO Max and Cartoon Network.

Here are the details HBO Max and Cartoon Network have shared so far.

• Sacha Baron Cohen (Borat) will star and is developing the story with King of the Hill co-creatorsGreg Daniels and Mike Judge at Bandera Entertainment. Nathan for You co-creator Michael Koman, who is also involved in the development, will handle screenwriting duties.
• Baron Cohen, Daniels, Judge, and Koman serve as executive producers along with Bandera president Dustin Davis.
• The show’s synopsis reads: “Set in the mythical ‘Town of Fools’ and originally told in Yiddish, Chelm: The Smartest Place on Earth shares the absurdist humor and interpretive questioning that is a nod to Jewish intellectual traditions.”
• Baron Cohen will narrate the special which spoofs the antics and exaggerated conflicts of the town, while also adhering to the essence and heart of classic folktales.
• “This pitch was so hilarious; we just knew the HBO Max audience needed to get a dose of this original brand of storytelling,” said Warner Bros. head of kids and family programming Amy Friedman. “Chelm: The Smartest Place on Earth is a perfect pairing of comedy and satire, and no one does that combination better than Sacha, Greg, Mike, and Michael. This unique project will breathe new, hysterical life into the nonsensical Chelmic wisdom that originated from this imaginary city of folks who aren’t quite the sharpest tools in the shed.”
• The special joins other recent HBO Max-Cartoon Network animation co-commissions Driftwood and Invincible Fight Girl, and live-action projects American Girl: Corinne Tan and Home Sweet Rome.

Pictured at top: Greg Daniels, Sacha Baron Cohen, Mike Judge