WildBrain TV broadcast shutdown, Nelvana production pause worrying to children’s advocate

Children’s programming in this country faces an uncertain future with the shuttering of a series of kids’ channels and a major producer suspending new productions. DHX Television Ltd., which operates as WildBrain, announced last month it was closing down its Family Channel, Family Jr., WildBrain TV and francophone service Télémagino. Corus Entertainment Inc. said earlier this month that it is halting production of many of the children’s shows made by the Nelvana subsidiary. The company stressed it was not getting out of the market altogether. “To confirm, Nelvana is not shutting down. It was announced earlier this year that as certain productions were completed, we would be pausing new studio productions for the time being,” Melissa Eckersley, head of corporate communications and relations with Corus, told The Wire Report in a statement. “Nelvana continues to operate, focusing on distribution, merchandising, and managing existing properties. As always, we continue to review opportunities and priorities as part of our ongoing business operations.” For the acting managing editor of the parenting website SavvyMom, the twin actions are disappointing. “Obviously, it means that there are fewer places for Canadian families to find this content and it's definitely a tragedy for the Canadian media production industry which has really been suffering over the past few years,” Corinne McDermott told The Wire Report in a telephone interview. “Canada’s always been heralded as one of the best in terms of producing kids’ programming.” Consumers do not always appreciate that series like Paw Patrol, The Magic School Bus and Care Bears are Canadian, she added. McDermott wants other broadcasters to fill the void caused by the WildBrain shutdown. “Hopefully they will. Canadians are very resourceful and Canadian producers have always managed to make silk purses out of sows’ ears and will continue to do so,” she stated. For Canadian production house Blue Ant Media, there is a silver lining in the dark clouds of children’s programming. “On the positive side, and I’m also talking as the parent of a nine-year-old, kids are consuming more content than ever before,” co-president Mark Bishop tells The Wire Report. “That is the plus side, that kids have a hunger as we all do for content and are consuming content on every single platform.” When making its announcement, WildBrain said it intends to continue leveraging its brands across streaming, YouTube, consumer products, and “immersive fan experiences.” Blue Ant recently purchased Jam Filled studios which is an animation house offering family programming. It has now begun production on Rubble and Crew, a spinoff of Paw Patrol. Bishop remembers loving Mr. Dressup as a child and being thrilled to meet the character when he was five years old. He later met actor Ernie Coombs while attending Ryerson University in Toronto. Blue Ant produced a documentary on the iconic Canadian children’s program for Amazon TV. “That’s the impact that Canadian storytelling and Canadian stories can have on kids,” he notes. “That lasts a lifetime. “We’re talking about a foundation, this is about making sure kids are growing up with a love of Canadian storytelling, about seeing themselves onscreen.” CBC/Radio-Canada and provincial broadcasters have been paramount in their support of children's entertainment. Blue Ant works with both CBC and TV Ontario. “We're very fortunate in Canada and specifically Ontario that TVO Kids has always either commissioned or produced incredible content, same with the CBC,” parenting site editor McDermott reports. “For as long as we have them, I think we can always count on them to make high quality and entertaining programming for children and families.” The Nelvana pause is also concerning to the family blogger. The suspension resonates with her. “Nelvana has been historically heralded as one of the greats in terms of Canadian children’s program producers,” McDermott said. “I feel personally because over the years I met people that worked there, a lot of really incredible content has come from there.” Bishop agrees. “It is unfortunate about Nelvana and it’s unfortunate that we lost Family Channel and I think those are important partners and players…I think it’s disappointing for a myriad of reasons, but where the hope is we still have an audience that loves to consume content,” he opines. “We just have to make sure we have an industry that’s producing it.” ppark@thewirereport.ca

WildBrain TV broadcast shutdown, Nelvana production pause worrying to children’s advocate

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By Paul Park
| September 18, 2025

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