It’s a great day to be blue as The Smurfs’ global license holder changes its name from IMPS to the Peyo Company. Named after The Smurfs creator Pierre Culliford’s artistic name, the rebranding was unveiled at the Annecy Festival and is designed to usher in a new era of entertainment inspired by its namesake’s creations. Using Peyo’s iconic signature, a new logo was unveiled alongside plans for the company’s future.
First introduced in comics in 1958, The Smurfs quickly became Peyo’s most famous creation, and they’ve never left our minds and hearts in the years since. The third season of their most recent TV series will premiere in August, introducing some brand-new characters over the course of 52 episodes. The series has also been renewed for a fourth season, with a making-of documentary in the works.
(Peyo Company)
Next Valentine’s Day will find The Smurfs heading back to the big screen in a star-studded film from Paramount Animation. It was previously announced that pop superstar Rihanna would be providing the voice of Smurfette in addition to providing the musical soundtrack. During the rebranding announcement, Peyo Company CCO of Audiovisual & Music, Nele De Wilde, unveiled more casting announcements. Additional voices will be provided by Nick Croll, James Corden, Amy Sedaris, Nick Offerman, Natasha Lyonne, JP Karliak, John Goodman, Octavia Spencer, Billie Lourd, Kurt Russell, Sandra Oh, Alex Winter, Daniel Levy, and Xolo Maridueña. The film’s logo was revealed during the press conference in all of its international variants.
(Peyo Company/Paramount Pictures)
The film, directed by Chris Miller (Shrek the Third) and written by Pam Brady (Ruby Gillman: Teenage Kraken), follows the Smurfs on an interdimensional adventure unlike any they’ve ever had. However, the film is also enriched with Peyo’s legacy, with an art direction directly inspired by Peyo’s comic drawings.
Taking a queue from Marvel Studios, the Peyo Company unveiled a graphic of their plans beyond the new feature film. Part of the reason for the rebrand was the opportunity to develop more of Peyo’s creations into globally recognized properties. Did you know that The Smufs is actually a spin-off? The blue characters first appeared in Peyo’s favorite creation, Johan and Peewit, a comic series about a young squire and his jester sidekick. Set to debut in 2027, Tales of Johan & Peewit will adapt the story “The Secret of the Salamander” throughout its first season. The Peyo Company unveiled a piece of concept art for the series, which should make Smurfs fans very happy.
(Peyo Company)
Also planned to debut in 2027 is a series inspired by another of Peyo’s classic comic characters, Benny Breakiron, about a super-strong kid who loses his incredible abilities anytime he catches a cold. It’s clear that this isn’t just a rebrand, but an initiative to reinvigorate Peyo’s classic works for a new generation to love.