Why Bob's Burgers Crew Wasn't Sure The Series Would Last

It's hard to imagine the current landscape of television without "Bob's Burgers." Just like the animated classics "The Simpsons," "Family Guy," and "King of the Hill" before them, the show created by Loren Bouchard has become a staple of the Fox network's weekly lineup since 2011. The Emmy-winning series starring H. Jon Benjamin, John Roberts, Dan Mintz, Eugene Mirman, and Kristen Schaal as the offbeat yet lovable Belcher family has also extended its reach even further through reruns via syndication and streaming on Hulu.

However, the Belchers' future wasn't always as stable as their current reputation would lead you to believe. Long before Bouchard's team created over 200 episodes filled with creative burgers and catchy songs, the people working on the show about this eccentric family living in a coastal town were worried that it wouldn't stay on the airwaves very long after the first season. Even after the original premise involving cannibalism was scrapped, there was cause for concern due to the amount of time it took before the network renewed the show.

But now that they're on the other side of those uncertain early days, "Bob's Burgers" producer and co-director of "The Bob's Burgers Movie" Bernard Derriman can look back without as much stress.

While promoting the 2022 feature, Bernard Derriman spoke to Variety about the process of turning the fan-favorite cartoon into a movie. The Australian-born animator mentioned that the thought had never crossed his mind despite "The Simpsons Movie" being released since his plate was full with "Bob's Burgers," "The Great North," and "Central Park." But long before the possibility of a film starring the Belchers was brought to him and the team by the studio, Derriman was more concerned about the show getting canceled during the first few seasons. He elaborated:

"I basically worked on the first season and it was a long time between the first season and the pickup for the second, meaning Fox was having some serious thoughts about picking it up again. And, so when I was directing on that second season, it was a good show, but it wasn't like a hit, it never really took off. So we always were sweating on it, basically. And at the end of every season, it was like, 'Are we gonna get picked up again?' And, slowly, slowly, every season, the time between the pickup at the end of the season, the pickup got smaller and smaller. Eventually, we basically hit a hump around season five where we kind of got the idea that 'Okay, we're gonna be going for a little while.'"

Thankfully, "Bob's Burgers" stayed on the air and went on to deliver stand-out episodes from the early seasons such as "Beefsquatch," "Topsy," and (my personal favorite) "Work Hard or Die Trying, Girl." With the rest of season 13 and presumably another season on the horizon after that, let's hope that this wild, wacky, Wonder Wharf-esque ride keeps going as they create even more memorable moments for fans all over the world.