Fan-Favorite Series ODD SQUAD Debuts First-Ever Movie This Summer on PBS KIDS

Season 2 premieres with a week of new episodes in June;

ODD SQUAD: The Movie – guest-starring Jack McBrayer and Hannah Simone
– debuts August 1

ARLINGTON, Va.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–On Monday, June 20, PBS
KIDS will premiere a new season of the hit series ODD SQUAD
with a one-hour special, followed by additional episode debuts
throughout the week. This season, the multiple Emmy-winning show from
The Fred Rogers Company and Sinking Ship Entertainment will present
all-new adventures when two new recruits, Agents Olympia (Anna Cathcart)
and Otis (Isaac Kragten), join the Odd Squad. Following the ODD SQUAD
premiere week in June, guest stars Jack McBrayer (30 Rock)
and Hannah Simone (New Girl) bring their
comedic talents to the PBS KIDS summer event of the season, ODD
SQUAD: The Movie, which debuts Monday, August 1.

“ODD SQUAD has become a hugely popular phenomenon, reaching 10
million children in the past year alone* and with more than 600 million
streams on digital platforms to date**,” said Lesli Rotenberg, Senior
Vice President and General Manager, Children’s Media and Education, PBS.
“With the new episodes and first-ever movie from ODD SQUAD this
summer, we hope to reach even more kids with a series that research has
shown is highly effective at developing the kinds of problem-solving
skills that they will need to thrive in the digital economy of the
future.”

In the upcoming ODD SQUAD: The Movie, when a rival group of
adults called Weird Team arrives with a gadget that fixes any odd
problem, Odd Squad is run out of business. The agents are forced to
disband and return to life as regular kids. When they learn the gadget
isn’t solving problems, but only covering them up, the original Odd
Squad agents, Olive and Otto, return to team up with the new Odd Squad.
Together, they use math and teamwork to disprove Weird Team and prevent
rampant oddness.

In each episode of ODD SQUAD, the agents use math and
collaboration skills to solve problems. In a recent study
from WestEd, “Odd Squad: Learning Math with PBS KIDS Transmedia Content
at School and at Home,” first-graders’ knowledge of algebraic thinking,
as well as numbers and operations, increased significantly after using ODD
SQUAD digital and hands-on resources.

New digital content from ODD SQUAD will include “Cases,” an
online game that invites kids to use math skills and deductive reasoning
to find the culprit behind some very odd happenings. The first four
cases will kick off with Season 2 on June 20, while the remaining cases
will launch in tandem with the movie in August. More new ODD
SQUAD games will be added as part of the free PBS KIDS Games app.

The movie will also be available to stream starting August 1 on pbskids.org
and the PBS
KIDS Video App, which is available on a variety of mobile devices
and on platforms such as Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, Android TV,
Xbox One and Chromecast. In addition, new ODD SQUAD games will be
available on pbskids.org and the PBS KIDS Games app.

ODD SQUAD is created by Tim McKeon (Foster’s Home for
Imaginary Friends, Adventure Time, The Electric Company) and Adam
Peltzman (The Electric Company, The Backyardigans,
Wallykazam!), and produced by Sinking Ship Entertainment and The
Fred Rogers Company.

ODD SQUAD is funded in part by the Heising-Simons Foundation and
the Corporation
for Public Broadcasting (CPB).

Program Descriptions and Air Dates (check local
listings)

ODD SQUAD: AGENTS OF CHANGE
Air Dates: June 20-24
When
Olive and Otto set off to run their own Odd Squad bureau, Ms. O must
find two new recruits who can fill their shoes. A one-hour special
premieres June 20 with additional new episodes premiering later in the
week.

ODD SQUAD: The Movie
Premiere Date: August 1
In
this feature-length ODD SQUAD event, a rival group of adults that
calls itself Weird Team arrives with a gadget that fixes any odd
problem. As a result, Odd Squad is run out of business and all the
agents are forced to disband and go back to their lives as regular kids.
Using math skills and teamwork, the kids discover Weird Team isn’t
actually solving problems, but just covering them up. The Season 2 cast
teams up with the Season 1 cast to stop Weird Team and save the world
from destruction.

*Source: Nielsen NPOWER, 3/30/15-3/27/16, L+7 M-Su 6a-6a, Reach 50%
uni, 6+ qual, P2+ and K2-11.

** Source: Google Analytics, October ’14 – April ‘16

About PBS KIDS

PBS KIDS, the number one educational media brand for kids, offers all
children the opportunity to explore new ideas and new worlds through
television, digital platforms and community-based programs. Kidscreen-
and Webby Award-winning pbskids.org
provides engaging interactive content, including digital games and
streaming video. PBS KIDS also offers mobile apps to help support young
children’s learning. The PBS KIDS Video App is available on a variety of
mobile devices and on platforms such as Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV,
Android TV, Xbox One and Chromecast. For more information on specific
PBS KIDS content supporting literacy, science, math and more, visit pbs.org/pressroom,
or follow PBS KIDS on Twitter
and Facebook.

About The Fred Rogers Company

The Company was founded by Fred Rogers in 1971 as the non-profit
producer of MISTER ROGERS’ NEIGHBORHOOD for PBS. In the years
that followed, it not only created hundreds of episodes of this
much-loved program, but also extended Fred’s values and approach to
other efforts in promoting children’s social, emotional and behavioral
health and supporting parents, caregivers, teachers and other
professionals in their work with children. The Fred Rogers Company
continues to build on Fred’s legacy in innovative ways through a wide
variety of media, and engaging new generations of children and families
with his timeless wisdom. The company’s highly-rated children’s TV
series include DANIEL TIGER’S NEIGHBORHOOD, PEG + CAT, and ODD SQUAD.
For more information, visit www.fredrogers.org.

About Sinking Ship Entertainment

Sinking Ship Entertainment is a multiple Emmy® Award-winning production
and distribution company specializing in kids’ live-action CGI blended
series. Since its launch in 2004, Sinking Ship Entertainment has
produced over 500 hours of content, filmed in over 35 countries, and
built 33 playgrounds. The company has rapidly earned a reputation for
high-quality, groundbreaking original series and companion interactive
experiences. Most recently in 2016, Sinking Ship Entertainment won an
additional 4 Daytime Emmy® Awards and in March 2016 won the Canadian
Screen Award for Best Preschool Series for ODD SQUAD. The company
operates a Toronto-based VFX and Interactive Studio, home to over 125
shipmates. Find out more at www.sinkingship.ca.

About the Corporation for Public Broadcasting

The Corporation
for Public Broadcasting (CPB), a private, nonprofit corporation
created by Congress in 1967, is the steward of the federal government’s
investment in public broadcasting. It helps support the operations of
nearly 1,500 locally owned and operated public television and radio
stations nationwide. CPB is also the largest single source of funding
for research, technology, and program development for public radio,
television and related online services. For more information, visit www.cpb.org
and follow us on Twitter @CPBmedia,
Facebook,
and LinkedIn.

About Heising-Simons Foundation

The Heising-Simons Foundation is dedicated to advancing sustainable
solutions in the environment, supporting groundbreaking research in
science, and enhancing the education for the nation’s youngest learners.
Learn more at heisingsimons.org.

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Contacts

PBS
Lubna Abuulbah, 703-739-8463
labuulbah@pbs.org
or
360
Public Relations
Roberta Lee, 347-801-2342
rlee@360pr.com
or
Grand
Communications (for The Fred Rogers Co.)
Alison Grand, 212-584-1133
alison@grandcommunications.com