Batman: The Animated Series is one of the most critically acclaimed and beloved animated shows of all time. The hit series debuted in 1992 and ran for two seasons, featuring some of the best creatives working in the animation medium at the time. One of the show’s creative geniuses went on to oversee one of Marvel animation’s most underrated shows.
Boyd Kirkland is an Emmy Award-nominated director who is one of the few people to have worked for both Marvel and DC. After his seminal work on Batman: The Animated Series, Kirkland serves as the lead producer on Marvel animation’s X-Men: Evolution, which is an underrated gem. Here is everything you need to know about how Kirkland came to work for Marvel.
Boyd Kirkland Talks Working For Marvel Animation After Batman: The Animated Series
Boyd Kirkland served as a timing director on Batman: The Animated Series, receiving a nomination for Outstanding Animated Program at the 20th Daytime Emmy Awards. Kirkland would later serve as the producer for Marvel animation’s X-Men: Evolution.
The series premiered in 2000 and aired 52 episodes until it was canceled in 2003 after four seasons. Kirkland worked as a producer on all four seasons and in an interview, detailed how he landed the job to produce an X-Men show for Marvel animation.
“I heard that Marvel was doing the show and contacted them about being the producer. Both Marvel and Kids WB interviewed me. The network had a great deal to say about what they wanted for the show, including approval of whoever would get to produce.”
Kirkland made the above statement about securing the role of the producer for the series. He added that Marvel did not have their own production facility at the time. As a result, Kirkland was responsible for negotiating deals and hiring staff and subcontractors along with providing creative input throughout the development process.
“Of course, I had a very talented and dedicated crew who made my life a lot easier along the way. They really carried the workload, while I ensured quality control.”
From Kirkland’s words, it is evident that he was running the ship when it came to crafting the stories of X-Men: Evolution. The series was extremely popular during the early 2000s, albeit not as much as its predecessor from the 90s X-Men: The Animated Series. As a result, X-Men: Evolution has become somewhat of an underrated gem in Marvel animation’s catalog.
Boyd Kirkland Reveals Facing Restrictions While Working On X-Men: Evolution
In the same interview, Boyd Kirkland also discussed the restrictions the team faced while working on X-Men: Evolution. Kirkland revealed that the network was slightly strict with censorship, particularly during the show’s first season.
“The first season was very restrictive. The network felt that action shows like Batman, etc, had gotten too dark and mature for the kid audience they were trying to reach, so they really kept a tight lid on us.”
Kirkland added that after the first season became a huge success, the creative team received more freedom. However, Kirkland admitted that the restrictions worked in his favor as he had always envisioned the show to be more character-driven.
Aside from his work as a producer on X-Men: Evolution, Kirkland also worked as a layout artist on Marvel animation shows such as Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends and The Incredible Hulk, during the 1980s. Kirkland sadly passed away in 2011 after a lengthy battle with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) and interstitial lung disease (ILD).
X-Men: Evolution is streaming on Disney+.
