‘Fortun3’: T.J. Miller & Jon Heder To Lead Web3 Animated Workplace Comedy Series Inspired By Sam Bankman-Fried’s Crypto Firm Collapse

Jon Heder and T.J. Miller are to star in a web3 animated series inspired by the collapse of crypto bank FTX.

Miller (Silicon Valley) has been cast to play a character inspired by Sam Bankman-Fried in a workplace comedy Fortun3 loosely inspired by the implosion of FTX last year. Heder (Napoleon Dynamite) is also joining the series, which is written by Ted Jessup (Ted).

Web3 story studio Toonstar is producing and, in what it calls an industry first, will also release an A.I.-powered companion game in which token holders guide characters through a series of life decisions and moral dilemmas similar to the board game, ‘The Game of Life.’

As the series storyline, the impacts will be felt by corresponding chapters of the companion game. A.I. will power the development of original characters and shareable digital comic books based on token holders’ gameplay. Players will also be able to earn their characters a role in the animated series.  

Bankman-Fried’s FTX was once riding high with investments from many major figures and companies but last year dramatically collapsed, with the cryptocurrency markets spiralling to two-year lows when rival Binance pulled out of a merger agreement. A list of its creditors revealed in January read like an A to Z of media and tech companies. The likes of Larry David Tom Brady, Shaquille O’Neal, Stephen Curry and Naomi Osaka, who promoted the business, were all named as defendants in a class action lawsuit against the firm filed in the Southern District of Florida.

Bankman-Fried was later indicted on fraud counts. He pleaded not guilty to eight criminal counts and a trial is set for October in the Southern District of New York. A judge recently rejected his attempt to throw out the charges and the case is set to proceed.

Founded by DreamWorks, Disney, and Warner Bros. veterans John Attanasio and Luisa Huang, Toonstar has focused on community-driven storytelling in each of its series to date, which comprise The Gimmicks, House of Chico and Space Junk. 

“Today’s entertainment consumers expect more than one-sided, passive entertainment. They want to participate in the storytelling and engage with other fans in a way that begins to resemble gaming models,” said John Attanasio, co-founder and CEO of Toonstar. “Our interactive model of storytelling has benefits far beyond more engaged fans. It’s a model for Hollywood that can uncover new IP and unlock  new revenue streams.”

Actor and comedian Miller was a star of HBO series Silicon Valley but saw his career derailed after allegations over his behavior arose and he made a fake bomb threat, which he claimed was the culmination of a “manic episode.” He was arrested after making the bogus call but the charges were dropped in 2021.

Miller and Heder with join Toonstar execs to will discuss the evolution and growing importance of audience participation in content development during a Comic-Con panel tomorrow.

Fortun3 will be released in early Q4 this year.