ToeJam & Earl co-creator on bringing the duo back, why Adult Swim backed out, Switch fans being super supportive, and the hopes of a series/movie

Greg Johnson is the co-creator of the iconic ToeJam and Earl, and he's the man heading up the alien duo's return in Toejam & Earl: Back in the Groove. Mr. Johnson sat down with Comicbook.com to talk about bringing ToeJam and Earl back, and kicked things off by sharing why now was the time to do so.

As is usually the case, it was a combination of factors, but there was one thing that really pushed me over the edge. I had been getting asked why I wasn’t running a crowdfunding campaign by many fans for a while, since so many other retro games were making comebacks. In late 2014 I was teetering on the fence, trying to decide if I should take the leap and I asked the Universe for a sign. Next thing you know, a friend of mine brought a GameSpot article to my attention: it was by Tom McShea and was titled “We need a New ToeJam and Earl as Soon as Possible”. As far as signs and portents go, this wasn’t one of the subtler ones I’ve seen. So, I guess you can all thank Tom McShea, messenger of the gods.

As you might remember, Adult Swim was going to be the publisher for Toejam & Earl: Back in the Groove, but that deal fell through. Johnson explains some of that situation, but it seems even he isn't fully filled in on what happened.

I’m not sure I know all of the reasons. It may be that the priorities, or focus, of Adult Swim as a company shifted. I was never really party to their inner decision process. What I can say is that we were much, much later than we had said we were going to be with the game. That was totally our fault, as we had way underestimated when we would have the game ready to ship on the various platforms and with online play. Adult Swim was super patient with us, and at one point said to us they felt they wouldn’t be able to do the game justice given the other titles they had in the works, and they asked me if I was interested in taking it back and self-publishing. I really appreciated their candor and their interest in seeing what was best for the product, so we ended up taking it back. In truth we were all quite excited (and nervous too) about self-publishing. We never would have gotten this game done and out if it wasn’t for Adult Swim. I feel quite grateful to them.

When Toejam & Earl: Back in the Groove was first announced, we had no idea if Nintendo fans would get to check it out. Thankfully, a Switch version was confirmed shortly thereafter. It's a good thing too, as it seems Switch players are really eager for the game!

So far we have seen more requests for the Switch version than the other platforms. We are super excited to see how it will perform. And yes, seeing it listed in the eShop makes it feel very real. I sure hope people love this game!!

After Toejam & Earl: Back in the Groove hits the market, what's next for the funky extraterrestrials? It sounds like there could be some slight hope of the duo getting a series outside of games!

A lot of where we go from here with TJ&E will depend of course on how well the game sells and what we have to work with. Our property is being represented by WME in Hollywood and we are hopeful that a series might happen, but our IP has been optioned a few times in the past and there are many hoops to jump through to get a series or movie deal off the ground.