The New 'Hey! Arnold' Movie Nails 90s Nick Nostalgia

A telephone pole in Los Angeles is covered in posters: one for a comedy show, one for a missing dog, and another for a found cat. Also, a flyer that reads, “Have You Seen This Person?” accompanied by an image of Gerald from Hey Arnold! On a pole a block away, one can find a similar sign, this time asking for Arnold.

Although someone out there is looking for them, some might say they're impossible to escape, as Hey Arnold! has continued to permeate popular culture since its 1996 Nickelodeon premiere. And for good reason: Arnold himself is a mellow and generous, Buddha-like character, who wonderfully balances the inner-city eccentrics who surround him, teaching valuable lessons while standing tall amidst life’s myriad darknesses.

Though the series ended in 2004, it was a lingering public demand for more Hey Arnold! that ultimately led to the 81-minute The Jungle Movie, which premiered on Nick at the end of November. As Craig Bartlett, the show’s creator, told me during an interview at Nickelodeon Studios, The Jungle Movie was brought to life by fans online. He'd had the project ready for years, but it took an overwhelming wave of nostalgic sentiment for Nickelodeon to finally say yes.

In The Jungle Movie, Arnold and his classmates venture to the Central American archaeological site, San Lorenzo, on a field trip. As it happens, this is where Arnold’s parents were last seen. Adventures ensue as Arnold continues his search for his lost mother and father.

Reflecting on the series as a whole, Bartlett said, “When we made [the show], it wasn’t that big a deal—we thought. It was just one of many shows that was out there. And [Hey Arnold!] becoming a classic in the minds of people is something new to us.”

The Jungle Movie rings satisfyingly true to the tone of the original series. The characters still confront their inner demons, including addiction, hypochondria, obesity, obsession, Munchausen syndrome by proxy, and so forth. Actors Francesca Marie Smith and Anndi McAfee reprise their roles, as Helga and Phoebe respectively, while Arnold and Gerald have been re-cast with actors Mason Vale Cotton and Benjamin Flores Jr. The original voice actor who played Arnold in season one, Lane Toran, and Jamil Walker Smith, who played Gerald throughout the series, return as pirates and macho tour guides.

Bartlett said that, when working with Nick to complete the movie, “We had these arguments with the network—Look, you gotta make it modern, millennial, blah, blah, blah. I feel like, eh, you just do your best, and kids will respond, because all you have to do is be in touch with your own childhood and what it’s like to be a kid, and that’s what I do for a living.”

The original show was both humorous and heartbreakingly real. Said Toran over the phone, “Most cartoons nowadays are nonstop noises in your face—it’s entertainment, but you’re not really taking anything away from it. It’s not giving you life lessons.” Though at the time when fans originally watched, they may have missed certain details, the effects of Hey Arnold! sit with you for life. One day you wake up and realize, Oh, Helga’s mom was an alcoholic.

In the mid 90s, Bartlett, along with writers Joe Ansolabehere, Joseph Purdy, and the late Steve Viksten, set out to create a children’s show that dealt with real issues. Bartlett recalled saying, back in the day, “It will be sad, but kids will like that.” He still re-watches episodes from time to time, and admitted, “They’re very emotional… I start crying, like, I gotta stop this, man. What the hell is wrong with me?”

By season three, the network had enough faith in Bartlett to leave him and the other writers to their own creative devices. The result was that they penned the most heartbreaking episodes they could imagine. Says Bartlett, “[The episode] ‘Helga on the Couch'—I pitched that since the start, but what a great thing to not do it ‘til season four… You’ve seen [Helga] do all these things, and you’ve followed her actions, and when you finally get her explaining [herself] to the therapist with a backstory you didn’t know—what she was like as a preschooler and stuff—it’s so much more satisfying.”

The long-awaited Jungle Movie satisfies in a similar way, providing closure for longtime fans. Bartlett said, "These things kind of have their time. It turns out that now is the best time ever to do The Jungle Movie.”

Beyond the new Hey! Arnold film, Nickelodeon has responded to the millennial desire for 90s nostalgia in multiple ways: A Rocko’s Modern Life reboot is in the works, while the nightly the Splat programming block plays classic Nick series including Kenan and Kel, Nickelodeon Guts, and Salute Your Shorts. On my visit to Nickelodeon Studios, I sat in the lobby while a TV played All That. The message is clear: 90s Nick is here to stay.

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