Apple TV+’s new ‘Peanuts’ film rights the record, just in time for Black History Month
Snoopy Presents: Welcome Home, Franklin, the latest animated original from Apple TV+, begins with a record scratch, just like that one untraceable meme. Franklin Armstrong, the first Black character in the core “Peanuts” gang, is flying through the air in a homemade soapbox derby car. The music stops, freeze frame.
“Hi I’m Franklin. Franklin Armstrong, if you want to be formal about it. Have you ever thought to yourself, how did I end up in this situation?”
Franklin’s comical start to what becomes his origin story continues with quips that feel geared toward OG “Peanuts” fans as well as new Snoopy zealots galvanized by recent merch and memes. After touring the town he’s recently moved to — he’s learned to never unpack or settle into a new city, because his dad, a Vietnam veteran, moves them around a lot — Franklin summarizes the kids that could be potential playmates into “a delusional pseudo-doctor, a devotee of someone called the Great Pumpkin, and a kid whose parents named him Pig-Pen.” It’s a cheeky wink to adult fans and their inner child.
Franklin also voices a retrospective observation: “One thing was for sure: There was a lack of variety in this place.”
Snoopy Presents: Welcome Home, Franklin is intended to honor the historic character of Franklin, as well as correct a mistake that’s bothered fans for decades. Incentivized by letters from teachers and parents after the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr., “Peanuts” comic strip creator Charles Schulz debuted Franklin on July 31, 1968, despite pushback from Southern segregationists. Franklin’s character was never fully fleshed out, however, and in what would later bother many fans, he was portrayed sitting separately from the rest of the gang in the iconic special A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving.
Franklin’s built a strong fan base in the decades since.
And the brand has leaned into Franklin as well. “Peanuts” debuted The Armstrong Project in 2022, a scholarship initiative intended to support students at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) dedicated to the character and cartoonist Robb Armstrong, whose last name was ceremoniously given to the cartoon character. Armstrong was a young fan of the comic strip and later a protégé of Schulz; he co-wrote the new Snoopy Presents special. At the time of The Armstrong Project’s launch, it established $ 200,000 endowments at both Howard University and Hampton University.
The rest of the new short film follows Franklin’s attempts at making new friends. Though he accidentally makes an enemy of Lucy (of course), he finally finds a connection with fellow military kid Charlie Brown over soapbox derbies and baseball. Franklin shares facts and personal anecdotes that fit right into the nation’s current celebration of Black History Month, like that his great uncle played baseball for the historic Negro leagues and that his favorite record is a jazz piece by John Coltrane. “Wow, a kid can really learn a lot hanging around with you, Franklin,” Charlie remarks.
By the end, viewers get catharsis on an animated slight, with Franklin sitting among his friends. More than just being accepted, Franklin wants to be cherished, to be cheered, to be understood — to be the center of attention. Franklin finally unpacks.
Watch Snoopy Presents: Welcome Home, Franklin on Apple TV+ now.
