Uglydoll is a

brand A brand is a name, term, design, symbol or any other feature that distinguishes one seller's good or service from those of other sellers. Brands are used in business, marketing, and advertising for recognition and, importantly, to create an ...

based upon a series of

plush toys A stuffed toy is a toy doll with an outer fabric sewn from a textile and stuffed with flexible material. They are known by many names, such as plush toys, plushies, stuffed animals, and stuffies; in Britain and Australia, they may also be cal ...

created by Sun-Min Kim. The toy line and brand began as an idea from a long-distance letter exchanges between the creators

David Horvath David Z. Horvath (May 28, 1971) is an American illustrator, comics artist, toy designer and author best known for creating the popular Uglydoll characters as well as the world they inhabit, The Uglyverse, with his wife, Sun-Min Kim. The toy lin ...

and Sun-Min Kim. The Uglydoll line was launched on February 14, 2001, and was awarded the ''Specialty Toy of the Year'' award by the

Toy Industry Association The Toy Association is an American trade association A trade association, also known as an industry trade group, business association, sector association or industry body, is an organization founded and funded by businesses that operate in a s ...

in 2006.

Origin

Uglydolls, David Horvath, 2012, Free Comic Book Day

Uglydolls, David Horvath, Sun-Min Kim, 2012, Free Comic Book Day

Uglydoll started with a letter Horvath wrote to Kim after she had to move away due to an expiring student visa. The letter had a cartoon of his character "Wage" at the bottom with the words, "Working hard to make our dreams come true so we can be together again soon" next to it. As a surprise gift, Kim sewed a doll of Wage and sent it to Horvath in the mail. Horvath showed Wage to his magazine publisher friend,

Eric Nakamura Eric Nakamura is a Japanese American magazine publisher, gallerist, and entrepreneur. He is the co-founder of Giant Robot (magazine), Giant Robot, owner of the Giant Robot store and GR2 Gallery, and curator of the Giant Robot Biennales and other mus ...

, owner of the'' Giant Robot'' magazine and store, who thought Horvath was pitching him a product and immediately ordered a few more for his shop. Horvath wrote to Kim asking her to sew more while sending emails with stories about Wage, Babo, and Ice-Bat's first-ever adventure, soon to become ''Chilly Chilly Ice-Bat''. Over the years, numerous collaborative art shows and conventions have been held at Giant Robot, Los Angeles. The Uglydolls were created in 2001 and included Babo, Cinko, Ice Bat, Jeero, OX, Target, Tray, Wage, Wedgehead, and many more doll characters.

In media

Film

In May 2011, it was announced that Illumination had acquired the rights to Uglydolls to make an animated feature film.

Chris Meledandri Christopher Meledandri (; born May 15, 1959) is an American film producer and founder and CEO of Illumination. He previously served as President of 20th Century Fox Animation, and has worked as the producer of the ''Despicable Me'' franchise ...

was set to produce, with a screenplay from Larry Stuckey. The original creators, David Horvath and Sun-Min Kim, were set to executive produce. However, the project never came to fruition. Four years later, in 2015, the American magazine ''Variety'' reported that an animated film based on Uglydolls would be the first family and animation project produced by STXfilms. The movie released on May 3, 2019. The film features the voices of

Kelly Clarkson Kelly Brianne Clarkson (born April 24, 1982) is an American singer, songwriter, author, and television personality. She rose to fame after winning the first season of ''American Idol'' in 2002, which earned her a record deal with RCA. Her debu ...

as Moxy (whose appearance is from the original Ugly Doll named Gorgeous, with Moxy's appearance being completely different),

Pitbull Pit bull is a term used in the United States for a type of dog descended from bulldogs and terriers, while in other countries such as the United Kingdom the term is used as an abbreviation of the American Pit Bull Terrier breed. The term was f ...

as Ugly Dog, and

Nick Jonas Nicholas Jerry Jonas (born September 16, 1992) is an American singer, songwriter and actor. Jonas began acting on Broadway at the age of seven, and released his debut single in 2002; this caught the attention of Columbia Records, where Jonas ...

as Lou. They all perform original songs for the film.

Wanda Sykes Wanda Yvette Sykes (born March 7, 1964) is an American stand-up comedian, actress, and writer. She was first recognized for her work as a writer on ''The Chris Rock Show'', for which she won a Primetime Emmy Award in 1999. In 2004, ''Entertainm ...

Gabriel Iglesias Gabriel Jesús Iglesias (born July 15, 1976), also known as Fluffy, is an American stand-up comedian and actor. He has produced a number of stand-up specials for television outlets such as Comedy Central and Netflix, including ''I'm Not Fat… ...

Blake Shelton Blake Tollison Shelton (born June 18, 1976) is an American country music singer and television personality. In 2001, he made his debut with the single " Austin". The lead-off single from his self-titled debut album, "Austin" spent five weeks at ...

Wang Leehom Wang Leehom (; born May 17, 1976), sometimes credited as Leehom Wang, is an American singer-songwriter, actor, producer, and film director. Formally trained at Eastman School of Music, Williams College and Berklee College of Music, his music i ...

Janelle Monáe Janelle Monáe Robinson (; born December 1, 1985) is an American singer, rapper and actress. She is signed to Atlantic Records, as well as to her own imprint, the Wondaland Arts Society. Monáe has received eight Grammy Award nominations. Mon� ...

, and

Emma Roberts Emma Rose Roberts (born February 10, 1991 Additional on October 9, 2016) is an American actress. Known for her work in film and television projects of the horror film, horror and thriller (genre), thriller genres, she has received List of awar ...

are also in the cast. Animation is produced by

Reel FX Creative Studios Reel FX Animation (or simply Reel FX) - formerly known as Reel FX Creative Studios (also known as Reel FX Animation Studios) is an American computer animation and visual effects studio based in Dallas, Texas; Hollywood, California. The studio dev ...

Television

In May 2018,

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 ...

signed a deal with

STX Entertainment STX Entertainment is a mini-major American entertainment and media company. Founded in March 2014 by film producer Robert Simonds, the studio produces film, television, and digital media projects. In April 2020, STX announced that it would merg ...

to produce an ''Uglydolls'' animated series. Hulu will also gain SVOD rights to the animated film. The animated series will consist of 26 episodes each season.However, due to the film being a critical and financial flop, the series is no longer in development.

References

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External links