By Chris Snellgrove
| Updated
If you’re a fan of sci-fi TV, it can be very difficult to find something that feels new and refreshing. After all, most sci-fi shows are trying to be like Star Trek, except for Star Trek, which is doing its best Star Wars impression. Star Wars, meanwhile, has no idea what it wants to do, which is why the last few years of TV shows have felt like an absolute fever dream.
Fortunately, the TV landscape is about to get a sci-fi show unlike any we have seen before. Peacock is adapting Matt Dinniman’s popular Dungeon Crawler Carl series of books into a new show that will be written by Chris Yost and executive-produced by Seth McFarlane. With the author planning to release 10 books (seven have been released so far), Dungeon Crawler Carl is poised to be one of the longest and most innovative sci-fi shows of the modern entertainment age.
Into The Dungeon
What is Dungeon Crawler Carl about, exactly? In the first book, aliens invade the Earth, flattening structures and killing most of the population. Survivors are encouraged to enter a video game-style dungeon in which they can level up, develop special skills, and employ any number of colorful powerups. Carl enters the dungeon with his pet cat, Princess Donut, who is transformed into an intelligent warrior thanks to an enhanced pet biscuit. Together, they fight exotic creatures, complete bizarre quests, and seek sponsors from a galaxy of eager viewers. Descending one floor at a time, this deadly duo has a simple mission: to get out or die trying.
Universal International Studios snagged the TV rights to Dungeon Crawler Carl in 2025, but there have been very few announcements about the show (including what network streaming platform it might appear on) for over a year. Now, it is confirmed that the show will stream on Peacock, and its creative pedigree should make sci-fi fans quite excited. Chris Yost has previously written fan-favorite movies like Thor: Ragnarok and shows like The Mandalorian. Seth McFarlane, meanwhile, is the showrunner for The Orville, which many consider a better Star Trek show than anything in NuTrek. McFarlane’s production company, Fuzzy Door, also has extensive experience in bringing talking critters like Princess Donut to life.
Matt Dinniman’s Own Platinum Awards Box
So far, that’s all we know about the Dungeon Crawler Carl show. There is no release date, and we don’t yet know who will play voice Princess Donut, play Carl, or otherwise bring this bizarre sci-fi universe to life. Fortunately, in between casting for this upcoming show, fans have plenty to keep them busy. The eighth Dungeon Crawler Carl book is coming out on May 12, and Renegade Studios is releasing both Dungeon Crawler Carl: Unstoppable (a 1-2 player card builder) and Dungeon Crawler Carl: The Roleplaying Game for fans who want to explore the World Dungeon in tabletop form.
We can only assume that Dungeon Crawler Carl creator Matt Dinniman is, like Princess Donut before him, pretty happy to have his own merch, including an upcoming series of toys that can’t get here quickly enough. But a television adaptation is certainly the biggest indicator that his ambitious storytelling has made it to the big time. With the latest Star Trek show getting canceled and Star Wars still reeling from the failure of the Sequel Trilogy, Dungeon Crawler Carl also has the chance to give hungry sci-fi fans something they’ve been asking for for years: something original and new.
Hopefully, he can avoid encouraging the upcoming swarm of new fans with the vulgar catchphrase of his most notorious character: “glurp glurp, motherf*ckers!”
