Hazbin Hotel (2024)

An R-rated musical comedy animated series set in Hell? Not bad for a first original animation.

When SVA last spoke with VivziePop (aka Vivienne Medrano, who earned a Bachelor's degree in Animation in 2014), she was still a DIY artist and freelancer, creating her own series Hazbin Hotel, which tells the story of Lucifer’s daughter, Hell Princess Charlie, as she attempts to run a demon rehabilitation center.

Medrano released a pilot episode on YouTube, which garnered over 92 million views and built a global fanbase. Hollywood eventually came knocking, and now, the Hazbin Hotel series, produced by Medrano, A24, and Bento Box Entertainment (known for producing Bob’s Burgers), premiered on Prime Video on January 19, 2024. Medrano serves as the executive producer and directed all episodes.

In an interview with Animation Magazine, Medrano discussed the origins of her series and how animation developed for her during her time as a student.

She said, "Some of the characters you see in the show have been with me since high school. [When I was] studying at SVA, I started telling these stories through comics and short stories... I was lucky to study at SVA, it’s an amazing school, and that's where I really developed my animation style."

On December 13, 2023, in Culver City, California, Hazbin Hotel creator Vivienne Medrano (a 2014 Animation graduate) attended the "Winter Wonderland" event hosted by Amazon Freevee and Prime Video at Culver Studios.

Hazbin Hotel on Prime Video, like its version on YouTube, blends adult humor, memorable characters, and catchy music to create a unique world. In fact, music is an integral part of the show, with brand-new original songs such as Ready For This, written by platinum-certified artist Sam Haft and Emmy-nominated Andrew Underberg, who contributed original music and lyrics to the series.

"Hazbin Hotel is not a show you can just put away easily," Medrano said. "It’s an adult comedy, but it also has a lot of heart and drama. It's an incredible musical."

In another interview with Cosmic Circus, Medrano mentioned that work on Season 2 for Prime Video has already begun. "Clearly, Season 2 will follow the events of Season 1, and while we haven’t seen it yet, it will focus on telling the story of a very interesting villain… a character we meet in Season 1."

Vivienne Medrano (a 2014 Animation graduate) is the creator of Hazbin Hotel. On December 13, 2023, she attended the Winter Wonderland event hosted by Amazon Freevee and Prime Video at The Culver Studios in Culver City, California.