The Emmy winning actor best known for New Girl will voice the iconic lasagna-loving cat in a 2D-animated series produced by Nickelodeon Animation Studios.
More than a decade after the lasagna-loving orange tabby last graced television screens, Garfield is making a return. Paramount+ has announced a new 2D-animated series centered on the iconic comic strip character, with Emmy-winning actor and comedian Lamorne Morris set to voice the role. The series is produced by Nickelodeon Animation Studios and draws directly from Jim Davis’ original comic strip, leaning into the character’s well-established sarcasm, appetite and bottomless reluctance to do much of anything at all.
Morris, best known for his long-running role on the Fox comedy “New Girl,” brings a sharp comedic sensibility to the part. His Emmy win underscores the level of talent Paramount+ is attaching to the project, signaling that the revival is intended to stand alongside the character’s most memorable incarnations rather than simply trade on nostalgia.
A long road from development to production
The series has been in the works for quite some time. Development on the project began in 2019 as part of a broader deal involving Viacom, which means the show has navigated a notably lengthy path before reaching its current stage. It is presently in production, with two veteran animation executives steering the ship.
Dave H. Johnson, known for his work on “Middlemost Post,” and John Trabbic III, a producer associated with “SpongeBob SquarePants,” serve as executive producers. Both bring substantial experience in the animation space, and their involvement suggests the new series will be crafted with attention to the visual and tonal qualities that made the source material endure for nearly five decades.
The first new Garfield animation in over a decade
This series marks the first new Garfield animation since “The Garfield Show,” which aired from 2009 to 2014 with Frank Welker providing the character’s voice. The gap between that series and this new one spans more than 11 years, making the announcement a meaningful moment for fans of the franchise who have watched the character thrive in other media while waiting for a return to television.
The Garfield brand remains remarkably durable. Since the comic strip first appeared in 1978, it has accumulated more than 200 million daily readers, and the character continues to maintain a notable presence on social media — a sign that its appeal has translated across generations and platforms without much erosion.
On the film side, the franchise has also been active. A 3D CGI feature film starring Chris Pratt as the voice of Garfield was released in 2024, and a sequel has already been announced, meaning the new Paramount+ series arrives at a moment when the character is enjoying a broader multimedia presence than it has in years.
Where the new series fits into Paramount’s bigger picture
The Garfield series is part of a wider push by Paramount+ to build out its kids and family content slate. The streamer recently announced two additional animated projects produced by Nickelodeon Animation Studios, The Elephant & Piggie Show and The Pigeon Show, both of which suggest a deliberate effort to develop original animated programming rather than rely solely on library titles.
Beyond animation, Paramount+ is expanding across multiple content categories. The platform has several ambitious live-action projects in various stages of development, including Discretion starring Nicole Kidman, a limited series titled 9/12, and Fear Not with Anne Hathaway. Upcoming animated titles include The Legend of Aang Avatar The Last Airbender and Avatar Seven Havens, while new unscripted content includes a dating show called Making Love and a docuseries titled Made for March.
The breadth of that slate reflects a platform working to compete across every corner of the streaming landscape, using recognizable IP like Garfield as a foundation while building original programming around it. For a character who once spent most of his time avoiding Mondays, Garfield appears to have a remarkably full schedule ahead.