Warner Bros. Discovery Takes ‘Dino Ranch’ Spinoff Series for Cartoonito Network
- Warner Bros. Discovery acquires Dino Ranch: Island Explorers, an animated spin-off of the Canadian preschool series Dino Ranch, for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, as part of a move towards international content.
As the U.S. scripted boom slows after the end of peak TV, Warner Bros. Discovery has leaned into international content with a deal to acquire Dino Ranch: Island Explorers , an animated spin-off of the Canadian preschool series Dino Ranch , for Europe, the Middle East and Africa.
WBD, which has engaged in content write-offs and cost-cutting as it faces a turbulent transition to the streaming age, is leaning into an established franchise and brand as earlier seasons of Dino Ranch ran on Disney Junior and Disney+ in the U.S. market.
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The deal for Dino Ranch: Island Explorers underlines an industry-wide move away from global rights deals to increasingly cobbling together financing as part of a traditional international co-production partnership. A more cost-conscious WBD has taken the Boat Rocker spin-off animated series for its Cartoonito preschool network across EMEA after a launch in 2026.
Zia Sands, director content acquisitions, partnerships and coproductions, WBC Kids, EMEA, said in a statement: "Cartoonito provides a safe and trusted space for pre-schoolers and their family to engage with the characters they love, fun filled stories and a host of exciting new adventures. The spin-off series of Dino Ranch , complements the values and expectation of our preschool audience and we're very excited to be partnering with Boat Rocker on what we are sure will be a high-end production that will entertain and delight our Cartoonito audiences."
The new kids series will also air on CBC in Canada. Dino Ranch: Island Explorers is created by Matt Fernandes of Industrial Brothers and produced with Boat Rocker.
The animated series sees the Cassidy Clan trade their cowboy hats for explorer hats and head to the mysterious and exotic Dino Island. Uncle Jack Cassidy lives on the island which is filled with new dinosaur species, giant insects and prehistoric amphibians. Jon, Min, Miguel and their trusty dinos will explore the Island's dino filled jungle, active volcano, and the previously undiscovered world under the water, according to a synopsis from the producers.
Other upcoming Boat Rocker series include Bet for Netflix and the recently announced international scripted co-productions, Video Nasty for BBC3 and WDR and Mix Tape for Foxtel's Binge.
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