''Koala Man'' is an animated

sitcom A sitcom, a portmanteau of situation comedy, or situational comedy, is a genre of comedy centered on a fixed set of characters who mostly carry over from episode to episode. Sitcoms can be contrasted with sketch comedy, where a troupe may use ne ...

created by Michael Cusack and developed by Cusack,

Dan Hernandez Daniel Jacob Hernandez (born November 20, 1983) is an American film and television writer and producer. He is most notable for writing ''Pokémon Detective Pikachu'', which he co-wrote with his writing partner, Benji Samit (along with Rob Letterm ...

, and

Benji Samit Benjamin Adam Samit (born July 21, 1984) is an American film and television writer and producer who is most notable for writing '' Detective Pikachu'', which he wrote with his writing partner, Dan Hernandez (along with Rob Letterman, Derek Conno ...

for

Hulu Hulu () is an American subscription streaming service majority-owned by The Walt Disney Company, with Comcast's NBCUniversal holding a minority stake. It was launched on October 29, 2007 and it offers a library of films and television serie ...

. The series premiered on

the US The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

and

Disney+ The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment Entertainment is a form of activity that holds the attention and interest of an audience or gives pleasure and deligh ...

internationally on January 9, 2023.

Plot

The series takes place in an

alternate universe Parallel universe often refers to parallel universes in fiction, a self-contained separate world, universe or reality coexisting with the real world, which is used as a recurring plot point or setting used in fantasy and science fiction. Parallel ...

called "Bushworld", where the sinking of the Titanic never happened, indirectly resulting in the

United States of America The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territo ...

being destroyed (except

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood, ...

, which became an island),

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

becoming the world's superpower, and Nicole Kidman becoming its

Queen Queen or QUEEN may refer to: Monarchy * Queen regnant, a female monarch of a Kingdom ** List of queens regnant * Queen consort, the wife of a reigning king * Queen dowager, the widow of a king * Queen mother, a queen dowager who is the mother ...

. The story follows Kevin Williams, an average middle-aged family man who decides to issue justice to the town of Dapto as the incredibly average superhero Koala Man. Possessing no powers and a simple costume, which is apparently enough to hide his identity, Kevin encounters a variety of evildoers that wish to do harm to his town. Kevin is joined by his family who put up with his misadventures including his down-to-earth wife Vicky, his popularity-obsessed daughter Alison and his nerdy son Liam who secretly possesses psychic powers.

Cast

Main

* Michael Cusack as Kevin Williams/Koala Man, a father and IT expert who moonlights as a low-rent superhero ** Cusack also voices: *** Liam Williams, Kevin's son who possesses psychic powers *** Damo and Darren, a pair of low-level criminals *** The Tall Poppy *** The Great One *** Nicole Kidman, the queen of Australia *** Huge Greg, Big Greg's older brother *** Various characters * Sarah Snook as Vicky Williams, Kevin's wife, who works at the school canteen *

Demi Lardner Demi Lardner is an Australian absurdist comedian based in Sydney. In 2013, she won Raw Comedy in Melbourne and went on to win So You Think You're Funny? in Edinburgh for her comedy set. She regularly streams on Twitch, and co-hosts the podc ...

as Alison Williams, Kevin's daughter

Guest

* Hugh Jackman as Big Greg, a beloved celebrity fishing expert and the head of the town council, who is Kevin's boss *

Jemaine Clement Jemaine Atea Mahana Clement (born 10 January 1974) is a New Zealand actor, comedian, musician and filmmaker. He has released several albums with Bret McKenzie as the musical comedy duo Flight of the Conchords, and created a comedy series of the ...

as Principal Bazwell/Christopher/The Kookaburra, the ineffectual principal of North Dapto High who is Vicky's boss and reveals himself as a supervillain. *

Alexandra Daddario Alexandra Anna Daddario (born March 16, 1986) is an American actress who had her breakthrough portraying Annabeth Chase in the ''Percy Jackson'' film series (2010–2013). In 2021, she starred in the first season of the HBO series ''The White L ...

as Herself * Rachel House as Janine, Vicky's friend and co-worker at the school canteen ** House also voices Louise, the owner of the local bowling club who harbours an attraction to Koala Man * Angus Sampson as General Peckmeister, Wizened Garbage Man, Summer Santa and many more. *

Friendlyjordies Jordan Shanks-Markovina (born 18 August 1989), known online as Friendlyjordies, is an Australian political commentator, journalist, stand-up comedian and YouTuber. His content often discusses contemporary Australian political issues, involving ...

as the Town Shopkeeper, Chippy, Snuff film victim *

Hugo Weaving Hugo Wallace Weaving (born 4 April 1960) is an English actor. Born in Colonial Nigeria to English parents, he has resided in Australia for the entirety of his career. He is the recipient of six AACTA Awards, Australian Academy of Cinema and Tel ...

as King Emudeus *

Justin Roiland Mark Justin Roiland (born February 21, 1980) is an American voice actor, animator, writer, producer, and director. He is best known as the co-creator of Adult Swim's ''Rick and Morty'' and its subsequent Rick and Morty (franchise), franchise. H ...

as Chad Wagon, an American who wants to turn Australia into a second United States * Jarrad Wright as Spider, Kevin's boorish next door neighbour ** Wright also voices: *** Maxwell, a wheelchair-bound septuagenarian with a long complicated history *** Maxwell's father *** Various characters * Michelle Brasier as McKayla Taylor Mercedes, a popular girl who speaks with a

vocal fry The human voice consists of sound made by a human being using the vocal tract, including talking, singing, laughing, crying, screaming, shouting, humming or yelling. The human voice frequency is specifically a part of human sound production in ...

and Alison's initial nemesis *

Miranda Otto Miranda Otto (born 16 December 1967) is an Australian actress. She is the daughter of actors Barry and Lindsay Otto and the paternal half-sister of actress Gracie Otto. Otto began her acting career in 1986 at age 18 and appeared in a variety of ...

as Mindy, a koala that Kevin found and cared for before she died after being hit by a car before the events of the series. *

Claudia O'Doherty Claudia O'Doherty (born 29 November 1983) is an Australian actress, writer, and comedian. She won the 2009 Melbourne Fringe Best Comedy Award and the Brisbane Comedy Festival Award for her debut show ''Monsters of the Deep 3D''. O'Doherty co-wr ...

as Rosie Yodels/Rosie 2, the most popular girl in school ** O'Doherty also voices: *** Rosie 1 and Rosie 3, Rosie's sister clones who want to take over Australia *** young Christopher *** Tanya *** Various characters * Nisrine Amine as The Egyptian Mummy, a survivor of the

Titanic RMS ''Titanic'' was a British passenger liner, operated by the White Star Line, which sank in the North Atlantic Ocean on 15 April 1912 after striking an iceberg during her maiden voyage from Southampton, England, to New York City, United ...

who became president of the U.S.A. and fled to the moon * The Tradies, corrupt

tradespeople A tradesman, tradeswoman, or tradesperson is a skilled worker that specializes in a particular trade (occupation or field of work). Tradesmen usually have work experience, on-the-job training, and often formal vocational education in contrast to ...

who secretly run every working aspect of Dapto and possess supernatural abilities. * The Tigglies, villainous parodies of the

Wiggles The Wiggles are an Australian children's music group formed in Sydney in 1991. The group are currently composed of Anthony Field, Lachlan Gillespie, Simon Pryce and Tsehay Hawkins, as well as supporting members Evie Ferris, John Pearce, C ...

who kill their victims, which are children, by draining them of their youth.

Episodes

Production

It was announced in March 2021 that

had given a series order for the show. Michael Cusack, who is the creator, voices the titular character, with Hugh Jackman, Sarah Snook and

joining the voice cast. In October,

, Rachel House and Jarrad Wright joined the cast, with

and

announced to be making guest appearances. On January 25, 2023,

was fired from the show (alongside his other Hulu show ''

Solar Opposites ''Solar Opposites'' is an American science-fiction animated sitcom created by Justin Roiland and Mike McMahan for Hulu. Originally created for the Fox Broadcasting Company, the project was shelved before being bought by Hulu and given a two-seaso ...

'') after he was charged with felony domestic abuse.

Release

The series premiered on January 9, 2023 on

in the United States, internationally on

via Star Hub and Latin America on Star+.

Reception

Season 1 has received positive reviews from critics. On

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...

, season 1 has an approval rating of 80% based on reviews from 10 critics, with an average rating of 6.6/10. The website's critical consensus states, "While ''Koala Man'' can feel like a hodgepodge of quirky ideas, its distinctive Australian identity gives it a pungent personality."

References

External links

* {{Justin Roiland American adult animated comedy television series Australian adult animated comedy television series American computer-animated television series Australian computer-animated television series American flash adult animated television series Australian flash animated television series 2020s American animated television series 2020s Australian animated television series 2020s American black comedy television series 2020s American surreal comedy television series 2023 American television series debuts 2023 Australian television series debuts Hulu original programming Alternate history television series Animated television series about families Television series by Justin Roiland's Solo Vanity Card Productions! Television series by Fox Television Animation Television series created by Michael Cusack Television shows set in New South Wales English-language television shows