May 14th, 2020 
Jackson Murphy 
Warner Bros. was originally going to release SCOOB! in theaters this weekend. But instead, they’re bringing it to the homes of millions of families with a release on VOD and Digital platforms. Director Tony Cervone is a lifelong animation admirer, and he’s thrilled to be sharing this new chapter of the Scooby Saga with fans of all ages.
Jackson Murphy: What was your involvement in the decision process for the film going from theaters to VOD & Digital?
Tony Cervone: The studio talked to me about it, but we were all kind of on the same page. The movie is done, and the decision [was] whether to hold it until theaters re-opened or kind of let it out now. And I think we were all of the same mind that this is kind of an important time to let the movie out. This is a bright, fun, silly summer movie with a lot of action and a lot of heart. And it’s a really good movie for families… and not just families. It’s a really good movie for fans.
I know it’s just a cartoon dog movie, but I think it could do a lot of good right now. Scooby-Doo is kind of comfort food, and if you look at all the kind of things people are eating during a pandemic, like banana bread and sourdough bread, it’s all heavy carbs. And Scooby-Doo is a heavy carb. He’s [the] warm banana bread of entertainment. I think now’s the time to do this.
JM: I watched the film the other night, and it is fun. I love the self-aware humor and the references to the other classic Hanna-Barbera cartoons and the old show. What kinds of research did you and your team do?
TC: Everyone really pitched in with the references and the jokes. We really loved putting the Easter Eggs in for the fans. And we really put a lot in. I put some in myself. Everyone was involved. And if it was a good idea, we tried to find a way to put it in the movie. It was a very fun group effort for us all.
JM: You directed some recent hand-drawn Scooby-Doo animated movies and produced the Mystery Incorporated animated series, so you know these characters pretty well. What were your goals in this transition to a new CG movie?
TC: My main goal, and the main goal of the whole team, was to present these characters in a way that was more fully realized than any way they had before. In terms of having more time and having greater resources, it was really important for us to animate these characters more fluidly, more beautifully than anyone ever has before. That had its own challenges because going from a 2D character to a 3D character, but still maintaining their charm and still maintaining all their appeal and find ways to go deeper with the characters – that’s all really challenging stuff. But it was something we all really dug in on and we all really enjoying doing.
JM: It is a really pretty animated film. You look at all the bright colors, especially the boardwalk, Venice Beach vibe. Did you know you always wanted the film to be set in modern day? Shaggy as a kid and as a young adult is on his cellphone. Did you always want it set in modern day as opposed to the ’60s or ’70s?
TC: Yeah. We always knew that the film would be present day, and when we show them as kids, it’s really only 10 years ago. You’re only in 2010. It doesn’t feel that long ago. But the year doesn’t matter so much as long as we don’t change the characters – and as long as we’re showing aspects of these characters that we’ve never seen before. So it was really fun showing their origin story.
When I was growing up outside of Chicago, I always felt that “Scooby-Doo” took place in California. And there were things that I learned about California through “Scooby-Doo”. It was important to me to begin the movie in a sunny, bright California place. Just like “Into the Spider-Verse”, the “Spider-Man” movie Sony made, was such a great representation of New York, we wanted to do that for L.A. We wanted this movie to feel like, “I could drive down that street. I know where that is.” And we knew we would go to some very fantastical places, so we wanted our Southern California to feel idealized but still kind of real.
JM: And the Casey Kasem nod at the beginning is very nice. And a core part of the origin story is Halloween night. So when you were growing up just outside of Chicago, did you actually dress-up as Scooby or Shaggy on Halloween night?
TC: No, I never got dressed as Scooby or Shaggy, but I did dress as Hong Kong Phooey one year.
JM: That’s great. If you grew-up with the Hanna-Barbera characters, you’re really gonna like this film because of the feel of it and the references and the vibe.
TC: It’s a love letter to Hanna-Barbera. I’ve been there a long time. I knew all the creators. I knew all the people. There’s a lot of Easter Eggs in the movie. My favorite is the Takamoto bowl. The shout-out to Iwao is important… Ruby-Spears and Hanna-Barbera and Karlson’s names. There are no mistake names. The original cast’s names have been used throughout the movie. It is not just a shout-out as a property, it’s a shout-out to the people who made these cartoons. And we miss them.
JM: This is Mark Wahlberg’s first animated movie. I can’t believe that. He’s fantastic as Blue Falcon. What made him the right choice to voice a key character in this story?
TC: I always feel like he was a bit of a long shot. I was as shocked as you are that he had never done animation before because he is so perfect for it. So when we found that out, we were like, “Well maybe he just doesn’t like animation or something” and “Is he really gonna jump into this and be Blue Falcon?” And then we met him, and he was excited about it. And then he came in and did it, and when he did, Brian really took off as a character. Then all of a sudden, we were like, “I know who Brian is now.”
And that’s the thing I’ll say about this cast. We tried to keep the characters honest to their core. We didn’t want anyone mimicking characters, we wanted them to get in their skin and live in them a little bit. We encouraged everyone to bring a little bit of their self and their ideas to all of the characters. And that certainly happened with Brian. I can’t tell Mark and Brian apart anymore. That was fun, and I think it makes him a really unique character.
JM: His timing is great, along with Will Forte and Zac Efron. One of my favorite lines: Velma asks Fred why he knows more about superheroes than the metric system, and Fred goes, “I’m an American man.” That’s a great line.
TC: (laughs)
JM: So in making this sort of superhero “Scooby-Doo” movie, what did you discover about superheroes that you didn’t know before?
TC: Well it was fun to kind of tell a superhero non-superhero story. Dynomutt is very capable, and Dee Dee Skyes, who originally appeared in the “Captain Caveman” cartoon, is very capable. But Brian is the superhero, and he’s basically as inept as Shaggy when it comes to heroics. So it was fun to tell a superhero movie where the main guy who should be the hero doesn’t even know what being a hero means. Playing with the tropes of superhero films, and playing with the concepts and ideas, that was kind of fun.
And giving him a real… heroic moment. That felt good. We looked at a lot of Bruce Timm cartoons when it came to animating Blue Falcon, but we also looked at a ton of Fleischer “Superman”. I love all this stuff. I’m an animation fan, and I don’t hide my references. They’re kind of all over the place. I feel like this movie is like going to animation history school.
JM: There’s some big payoffs with these characters and themes of friendship and teamwork and partnership that families are really going to like. So there’s a big celebrity cameo in this movie. Now, I didn’t know about it until it happens in the movie. I know it’s out there a little bit… but I would love to know how you were able to make a certain celebrity cameo happen in “SCOOB!”
TC: That celebrity cameo was the fastest guest we got on the movie. And it shocked us because we asked and we got an immediate “Yes”. And even before the “Yes” was official, that celebrity cameo was talking about it on their own show and excited to do it. And the reason we found out why is that that celebrity cameo and that celebrity cameo’s son (who also appears in the movie) are Scooby-Doo experts. It’s their favorite cartoon. It was his favorite cartoon growing up, and now it’s his favorite thing for them to watch together. And they are experts – they know everything inside and out. It’s great. They came to this as fans. We were lucky and honored and excited.
JM: That’s awesome. As it was happening, I was like, “What?! This is crazy.” But it makes sense.
TC: (laughs)
JM: Millions of families are going to be watching “SCOOB!” this weekend. What’s your go-to recommendation for the perfect Scooby Snack for the “SCOOB!” viewing party?
TC: My personal favorite Scooby Snack… what I think would complement the movie well… would be a nice fresh pizza. I love to eat pizza and watch movies. Tomorrow night we are having it when we watch the movie at home, so that’ll be our Scooby Snack.
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