HBO Max orders a Harley Quinn spinoff starring Kite Man

By Blair Marnell Published April 28, 2022

The Harley Quinn animated series was such a breakout hit for the DC Universe app that HBO Max already has a third season lined up to premiere later this year. Now, Variety is reporting that a spinoff series featuring Kite Man has been officially ordered to series by HBO Max.

Matt Oberg will reprise his role as Kite Man on the show. Bill Finger and artist Dick Sprang created Kite Man in 1960 as a minor Batman villain who incorporated kites into his crime sprees. The character has largely been played for laughs over the decades, but Kite Man’s recent portrayal in the comics added a tragic twist to the character as he took up the persona following the death of his son.

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In the Harley Quinn animated series, Kite Man (a.k.a. Charles “Charlie” Brown) is a lovable loser who was once engaged to Poison Ivy. But in the season 2 finale, Kite Man broke things off with Ivy when he finally realized that she was actually in love with Harley herself.

The new series has a working title of Noonan’s, which is named after the supervillain bar in Harley Quinn. The premise for the new series is that Kite Man has purchased the bar with his new partner, Golden Glider. However, they still have to commit crimes on the side in order to keep their bar in business.

Kite Man and Harley Quinn in the Harley Quinn series. — Image used with permission by copyright holder

In a statement, Warner Bros. Animation’s Peter Girardi said “Harley Quinn unlocked a world of hilarious possibilities with the iconic superheroes and supervillains of the DC Universe. Exploring this world further with our partners at HBO Max and DC is going to be a lot of fun. Plus, after getting dumped by Poison Ivy, the least we could do was give Kite Man his own show.”

Kaley Cuoco and Lake Bell will reprise their respective roles as Harley Quinn and Poison Ivy in the pilot episode. Cuoco is also attached as an executive producer on the new series. Justin Halpern, Patrick Schumacker, and Dean Lorey, the co-creators of the Harley Quinn animated series, will also executive produce the spinoff. Lorey will be the showrunner, and the first season will consist of ten episodes.

HBO Max hasn’t set a premiere date for the series. But given the long lead time needed for animation, a debut may not happen until 2023 or even 2024.

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Blair Marnell has been an entertainment journalist for over 15 years. His bylines have appeared in Wizard Magazine, Geek…

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