The voice cast of animated children's comedy series Eddie's Lil' Homies have been announced ahead of its early-2024 premiere.
The ten part series stars Hunter Page-Lochard (Cleverman) as Eddie, Miah Madden (Bali 2002) as Lottie, Andrew Dang as Tal and Billy Betts (Eddie Betts' eight-year-old son) as Junior.
Meanwhile supporting cast members include Leela Varghese (A Beginner's Guide to Grief, Totally Wild) as Shanti, James Smith as Lachie and Crystal Nguyen (Erotic Stories) as Decks.
Based on the beloved book series by former AFL star Eddie Betts, the animated series follows Eddie and his eclectic group of friends as they embark on exciting playground adventures, exploring the joys and obstacles of friendship.
Beyond the confines of home and school, their friends become their family, and the playground becomes their entire universe. Within this world of endless possibilities, competition, imagination, and fantasy intertwine.
Here, imaginary friends come to life, simple games like rock paper scissors hold immense significance, and acts of kindness, empathy, and a catchy rap can mend any situation.
Mr Betts said the journey of watching the characters of Eddie's Lil' Homies come to life has been a wonderful experience.
"Eddie's Lil' Homies characters come to life in the hands of such a talented cast headed by Hunter and Miah, and a great experience for Billy to be a part of the series and learn from such a diverse group of actors," Betts said.
"Each of the cast members have brought so much fun to their character, we can't wait for kids to laugh and rap along with them when they watch the series next year."
Highly Spirited Sophie Byrne, along with Mr Betts and Betts Promotions' Anna Scullie have been given the role of producers of Eddie's Lil' Homies.
Black Comedy's Mark O'Toole and Australian Children's Television Foundation Head of Content, Bernadette O'Mahony will serve as the executive and story producer for the show.
"Each of the talented actors have brought an authenticity to their role that we are truly grateful for – and they are very funny," Ms O'Mahony said.
"It has been great to see and hear Eddie, Tal, Lottie and their friends evolve from page to screen over the last year."
As part of Netflix's collaboration with Taronga Conservation Society, a sneak peek of Eddie's Lil' Homies will be screened at Taronga Zoo in Sydney from 20 December to 2 February.
The screening will take place in the Centenary Theatre and is part of a specially curated lineup of children's titles shown during the summer holidays.
Eddie's Lil' Homies is the first co-commission between Netflix and NITV, with significant production investment from the Australian Children's Television Foundation (ACTF).
Animation director Arthur Moody and co-director Luke Jurevicius are involved in the production, with animation services provided by Vishus Productions and post-production services provided by Artisan Post Group.
Eddie's Lil' Homies premieres on NITV, Netflix and SBS On Demand in early 2024.
