Smiling Friends Creators Share Their Decision to End the Show After Season 3 on Adult Swim
Adult Swim’s animated comedy Smiling Friends is nearing its conclusion. The series creators, Michael Cusack and Zach Hadel, shared the news via an audio message on the program’s X account.
While the announcement came with disappointing news for fans, there is a silver lining. The recently concluded Season 3, which aired its final episode on November 30, will be followed by two additional episodes set for release on April 12. Cusack and Hadel described these upcoming episodes as “little stragglers, little rogue planets out there,” noting that they are not thematically linked to the series and are not intended as a series finale, leaving the possibility open for future installments.
The creators clarified that the decision to end Smiling Friends was entirely theirs, with support from Adult Swim executives.
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Explaining their reasoning, Cusack stated, “After we finished Season 3, Zach and I both had the same feeling where we feel pretty burnt out after putting years and years into this, but also pretty accomplished. We just came to this feeling that we thought that could just be it after Season 3.”
Hadel added, “From the very, very beginning of the show, we always said, Oh, man, how great would it be to try to make the show as good as it could be, put 110% into it, and then go out what feels like on top, what feels like leaving them wanting more… After several years of really, really grinding on this show, without any breaks, we got to a point where we felt like that’s a good spot to end it. We wouldn’t want to be doing more seasons with half-hearted or burnt-out effort. That’s not fair to us. It’s not fair to the audience to give you guys f*cking slop.”
Both Cusack and Hadel expressed their gratitude to fans for their enthusiastic support. “It’s been a ride of a lifetime,” Cusack remarked. “The show got way bigger than either of us ever imagined: all the fan art, all the costumes, people sharing memes, all of it.”
They encouraged networks to continue hiring the Smiling Friends crew for future projects.
Smiling Friends will be available for streaming on HBO Max the day after its air date. Season 3 features characters Pim, Charlie, Flint, and their friends embarking on a new quest to spread joy across the land. The series is produced by Williams Street, Adult Swim’s in-house production company.
An important announcement from Michael and Zach pic.twitter.com/wVGLap6yrc
— adult swim (@adultswim) February 26, 2026
