| Lil Kev | |
|---|---|
| Genre | |
| Created by |
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| Voices of | |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 10 |
| Production | |
| Executive producers |
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| Producers |
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| Editor | Joe Gressis |
| Running time | 22–minutes |
| Production companies |
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| Original release | |
| Network | BET+ |
| Release | March 6, 2025 |
| Network | Paramount+ |
Lil Kev is an American adult animated television series created by Matthew Claybrooks and Michael Price.
On October 16, 2026, it was announced that the series was renewed for a second season, which is set to premiere on Paramount+ on December 9, 2026.
Set in 1993 North Philadelphia, the series follows 12-year-old Kevin Hart, whose wild imagination and unshakable optimism constantly collide with his neighborhood’s harsh realities.
| No. | Title | Written by | Original release date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Take Your Kev to Work" | Matthew Claybrooks & Michael Price | March 6, 2025 | |
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When Kev's altercation with Chin-Check sparks a riot in North Philly, Nancy takes him to the E.R., where she works to scare him straight. | ||||
| 2 | "Kev the Babysitter" | Rob Haze | March 6, 2025 | |
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Kev's plan to go to Rhe Rhe's party is thwarted when he gets stuck babysitting Uncle Richard Jr's two rowdy kids. | ||||
| 3 | "Laugh at My 'Paign" | Eric Goldberg & Peter Tibbals | March 6, 2025 | |
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When the community pool closes, smooth-talking city council candidate Coleman Bridges proves unhelpful, so Kev schemes for Henry to run against Coleman. | ||||
| 4 | "Mr. Uncle Mom Jr." | Tyree Elaine | March 6, 2025 | |
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Uncle Richard is put in charge of the boys while Nancy takes a risk visiting a new hair salon; when Kev and Robert's troublemaking plans go awry, Richard and Henry clean up the mess. | ||||
| 5 | "Driving Miss Nancy Crazy" | Henry Gammill | March 6, 2025 | |
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Inspired by Rev. Mooney's sermon, Kev and Nancy try to prove each other wrong as they help their racist elderly neighbor; Richard thinks Miss Green is avoiding him. | ||||
| 6 | "Trial and Terror" | Marlena Rodriguez | March 6, 2025 | |
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Kev's class completes a read-a-thon challenge, but when their progress logbook is stolen, it puts their pizza party at risk, so the class holds a mock trial to catch the thief. | ||||
| 7 | "The King and Queen of Harts Play Spades" | Angel Weaver | March 6, 2025 | |
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Nancy and Henry head to Baltimore to reclaim their Spades glory from years past, and Kev gets nervous when he attracts the attention of a girl. | ||||
| 8 | "This Isn't 39" | Chris Cobb | March 6, 2025 | |
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When Nancy goes out with her friend Loretta for one last crazy night before she turns 40, Kev and Henry trail them to keep Nancy away from other men. | ||||
| 9 | "Bittersweet Charity" | Matthew Claybrooks & Michael Price | March 6, 2025 | |
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When Nancy watches after Dirty Dante, Kev takes advantage of his mother's distraction to stay out late, and Richard suspects Miss Green is losing interest in him. | ||||
| 10 | "Sink or Swim" | Jeff Norkin & Nadine Mahasneh | March 6, 2025 | |
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Kev starts a swim team with a glum new kid in town, and Nancy's dinner party for Coleman goes off the rails when surprise guests crash the dinner. | ||||
Lil Kev was conceived when executive producer and star Kevin Hart sought out television writers to adapt his early stand-up material and 1990s childhood in North Philadelphia into an adult animated sitcom, where Claybrooks and Price were independently selected and subsequently formed a writing partnership to anchor the project.
The series began development in 2016. By 2017, executive producer Jeff Clanagan and Hart's company, Hartbeat Productions, released a short digital proof of concept on Facebook and YouTube to gauge audience reactions.
The series faced a prolonged development process, which the show originally was pitched to Fox Broadcasting Company in 2018, before not being passed for a full series by the network. It also navigated multiple script iterations, structural overhauls, and pitch cycles across several networks before finally securing a direct-to-series order from BET+. During periods of potential cancellation, Claybrooks was credited with actively maintaining the project’s momentum.
Principal animation began well ahead of the premiere, with active production stretching from a year and 1 month, from October 2023 through November 2024. The physical production was led by executive producers Alex Bulkley and Corey Campodonico of the West Hollywood-based studio ShadowMachine, known for its work on shows like the first five seasons of Robot Chicken and BoJack Horseman. The overseas animation services were provided by Toon City in Manila, Philippines, where the animation team intentionally designed a hand-drawn aesthetic utilizing distinct, inky lines and layered, painterly background textures meant to contrast with traditional digital animation styles.