Smiling Friends is an animated TV series for adults created by Zach Hadel, Michael Cusack and Cartoon Network's Night-Time programming block Adult Swim. It revolves around a small charity that makes people smile.
As part of Adult Swim’s annual April Fools’ Day event, the pilot episode aired unannounced on April 1, 2020. It was also broadcast alongside Cusack's series, YOLO Crystal Fantasy. Adult Swim ordered the full season on May 19, 2021. It was originally scheduled to air in late 2021. Adult Swim ordered a full season on May 19, 2021. It was originally scheduled to premiere in late 2021.
Smiling Friends was a commercial and critical success. It received universal praise from critics and audiences for its humor, writing, and integrations of mixed media, including stop motion and 2D animation.