''Kickin' It'' is an American
comedy
Comedy is a genre of dramatic works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium.
Origins
Comedy originated in ancient Greec ...
television series created by
Jim O'Doherty
Jim O'Doherty (born 1959) is an American television producer, writer and actor. Career
As a television producer and writer he is best known for his work on the sitcoms '' Grounded for Life'' and ''3rd Rock from the Sun''. He was nominated for a P ...
that aired on
Disney XD
Disney XD is an American pay television television channel, channel owned by the Disney Branded Television and Disney Entertainment units of The Walt Disney Company. The channel is aimed primarily at older children ages six to eleven years old ...
from June 13, 2011 to March 25, 2015. The series stars
Leo Howard,
Dylan Riley Snyder,
Mateo Arias,
Olivia Holt
Olivia Hastings Holt (born August 5, 1997) is an American actress and singer. She starred in the Disney XD series ''Kickin' It'', List of Disney Channel original films, Disney Channel Original Movie ''Girl vs. Monster'', and the List of program ...
, Alex Christian Jones, and
Jason Earles.
Premise
Located in a strip mall, the Bobby Wasabi Martial Arts Academy is known as the worst dojo in the underperforming nationwide Bobby Wasabi chain. To improve the dojo's image, a tight knit crew of underdogs enlists Jack to join and help teach them about life, karate, and friendship.
Episodes
Cast
*
Leo Howard as Jack
*
Dylan Riley Snyder as Milton
*
Mateo Arias as Jerry
*
Olivia Holt
Olivia Hastings Holt (born August 5, 1997) is an American actress and singer. She starred in the Disney XD series ''Kickin' It'', List of Disney Channel original films, Disney Channel Original Movie ''Girl vs. Monster'', and the List of program ...
as Kim (seasons 1–3, guest season 4)
* Alex Christian Jones as Eddie (seasons 1–2)
*
Jason Earles as Rudy
Production
On November 11, 2010,
Disney XD
Disney XD is an American pay television television channel, channel owned by the Disney Branded Television and Disney Entertainment units of The Walt Disney Company. The channel is aimed primarily at older children ages six to eleven years old ...
ordered martial arts inspired
comedy
Comedy is a genre of dramatic works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium.
Origins
Comedy originated in ancient Greec ...
series ''Wasabi Warriors'', a working title, which was created by
Jim O'Doherty
Jim O'Doherty (born 1959) is an American television producer, writer and actor. Career
As a television producer and writer he is best known for his work on the sitcoms '' Grounded for Life'' and ''3rd Rock from the Sun''. He was nominated for a P ...
, who has previously worked on ''
Grounded for Life'' and ''
3rd Rock from the Sun
''3rd Rock from the Sun'' is an American television sitcom created by Bonnie and Terry Turner, which originally aired from January 9, 1996, to May 22, 2001, on NBC. The show is about four Extraterrestrial life, extraterrestrials who are on an e ...
''. Jim O'Doherty and Marc Warren serve as executive producers, while Joey Scott serves as producer. Starring in the series are
Jason Earles as Rudy,
Leo Howard as Jack,
Mateo Arias as Jerry,
Dylan Riley Snyder as Milton, Alex Christian Jones as Eddie, and
Olivia Holt
Olivia Hastings Holt (born August 5, 1997) is an American actress and singer. She starred in the Disney XD series ''Kickin' It'', List of Disney Channel original films, Disney Channel Original Movie ''Girl vs. Monster'', and the List of program ...
as Kim. The
multi-camera
The multiple-camera setup, multiple-camera mode of production, multi-camera or simply multicam is a method of filmmaking, television production and video production. Several cameras—either film or professional video cameras—are employed on ...
series would begin production in
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 ...
in January 2011 for a 2011 premiere and would be a production of
It's a Laugh Productions
It's a Laugh Productions, Inc. is an American production company owned by The Walt Disney Company which produces live-action teen sitcoms and sketch comedies airing on Disney Channel and Disney XD. It is a division of Disney Branded Televisio ...
. On May 16, 2011, Disney XD announced that the series would be premiering as ''Kickin' It'' on June 13, 2011.
The series was inspired by Jim O'Doherty's childhood growing up on
Long Island, New York
Long Island is a densely populated continental island in southeastern New York (state), New York state, extending into the Atlantic Ocean. It constitutes a significant share of the New York metropolitan area in both population and land are ...
, where he earned a green belt in martial arts, but was forced to end his training when his local dojo closed down and was turned into a veterinary clinic. This childhood connection to martial arts, combined with three of his daughters' interest in karate, laid the foundation for the premise of the series.
On September 21, 2011, Disney XD renewed the series for a second season. On November 5, 2012, Disney XD renewed the series for a third season, with Alex Christian Jones not returning. On August 21, 2013, Disney XD renewed the series for a fourth season, with production to start in
Los Angeles
Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
in November 2013 for a 2014 premiere. It was also announced that
Olivia Holt
Olivia Hastings Holt (born August 5, 1997) is an American actress and singer. She starred in the Disney XD series ''Kickin' It'', List of Disney Channel original films, Disney Channel Original Movie ''Girl vs. Monster'', and the List of program ...
would be leaving the series to star in
Disney Channel
Disney Channel is an American pay television television channel, channel that serves as the flagship (broadcasting), flagship property of Disney Branded Television, a unit of the Disney Entertainment business segment of the Walt Disney Company ...
's comedy series ''
I Didn't Do It''.
Broadcast
In the UK and Ireland, the series aired on
Disney XD
Disney XD is an American pay television television channel, channel owned by the Disney Branded Television and Disney Entertainment units of The Walt Disney Company. The channel is aimed primarily at older children ages six to eleven years old ...
, where it aired as a preview on July 21, 2011, and officially premiered on September 1, 2011. In Australia and New Zealand, the series aired on
Disney Channel
Disney Channel is an American pay television television channel, channel that serves as the flagship (broadcasting), flagship property of Disney Branded Television, a unit of the Disney Entertainment business segment of the Walt Disney Company ...
, where it aired as a preview on December 31, 2011, and officially premiered on August 25, 2012. In Australia, the series premiered on
Disney XD
Disney XD is an American pay television television channel, channel owned by the Disney Branded Television and Disney Entertainment units of The Walt Disney Company. The channel is aimed primarily at older children ages six to eleven years old ...
on April 10, 2014. In Malaysia, the series premiered on
Disney XD
Disney XD is an American pay television television channel, channel owned by the Disney Branded Television and Disney Entertainment units of The Walt Disney Company. The channel is aimed primarily at older children ages six to eleven years old ...
on September 24, 2012.
Ratings
The series premiere of ''Kickin' It'' launched as the highest-rated series premiere in
Disney XD
Disney XD is an American pay television television channel, channel owned by the Disney Branded Television and Disney Entertainment units of The Walt Disney Company. The channel is aimed primarily at older children ages six to eleven years old ...
history, including when the network was known as
Toon Disney
Toon Disney was an American multinational pay television channel owned by Disney Branded Television, a subsidiary of Disney-ABC Television Group. The channel's target audience was children aged 7–11, and older children and adolescents aged 8� ...
. The series premiere garnered 873,000 total viewers and performed well in key demographics, with 578,000 viewers among kids 6–14 and 393,000 viewers among tweens 9–14. Additionally, it marked as the number-one series premiere of all time among kids 6–11, where it received 431,000 viewers.
References
External links
*
{{It's a Laugh Productions
2010s American children's comedy television series
2011 American television series debuts
2015 American television series endings
American English-language television shows
Disney XD original programming
American martial arts television series
Television series by It's a Laugh Productions