Cleopatra in Space is an American animated science fiction comedy television series produced by DreamWorks Animation and animated by Titmouse, Inc., based on the graphic novel series of the same name by Mike Maihack. The showrunners for the series are Doug Langdale and Fitzy Fitzmaurice.
In the United States, the first five episodes were released on NBCUniversal's streaming service Peacock for Xfinity customers on April 15, 2020, making this the first DreamWorks Animation series to be released on a streaming device other than Netflix or Prime Video. This article confirmed that only some episodes were available noting that "some episodes are already available via a preview of the service for Comcast customers." On July 15, 2020, the first season was officially released when the service launched nationwide. Prior to its release in the United States, the series was first broadcast in Southeast Asia on DreamWorks Channel beginning on November 25, 2019. The show is geared toward those between ages 6 and 11. Langdale, in an interview, said that he is attempting to make sure the show is "accessible to a younger audience," even as he doesn't give much thought to what age demographic the show is aiming towards.
Plot Cleopatra in Space is a comedic adventure focusing on Cleopatra's teenage years, as she deals with the ups and downs of being a high school teenager, after she's transported 30,000 years into her future to a planet with Egyptian themes ruled by talking cats, and she is said to be the savior of a galaxy. Cleopatra and her newfound friends work to try and return her to her own time, in Ancient Egypt, as she gains new combat skills in the process. Showrunner Doug Langdale described the show as a "real move-forward story" which continues forward without interruption.
Characters Main Cleopatra "Cleo" (voiced by Lilimar Hernandez) – The fearless and confident protagonist of the series. The 15-year-old princess of ancient Egypt, whose father is Pharaoh King Ptolemy (Sendhil Ramamurthy), she ends up sucked into a portal that sends her 30,000 years into the future where she learns she is the prophesied "Savior of the Nile Galaxy", destined to defeat the evil space tyrant Octavian. She ends up attending the futuristic intergalactic academy named P.Y.R.A.M.I.D. to obtain the proper training and skills to fulfill her role. She is sometimes reckless and impulsive, but has a good heart and wants peace. She has also gained strange and powerful powers from her time-travel, which manifests in pink and can be used to drain energy and project it into energy waves and beams. Lilimar called Cleo a character who is not completely mature or responsible, but a young girl who is on the road to becoming a hero, a person who is courageous and brave, seeing "a lot of positivity in the world, no matter how dark things seem to be," even as she seeks adventure all the time. Akila (voiced by Katie Crown) – A pink-eyed fish girl from another planet and the first of Cleopatra's teammates. She is very friendly and optimistic, but over-enthusiastic. She may have a crush on Brian. She has two moms: Theoda (voiced by Cissy Jones) and Pothina (voiced by Kari Wahlgren), who are scholars at The Savior Institute, use dated social expressions and love their daughter. They are the first confirmed LGBTQ characters in the series. Brian (voiced by Jorge Diaz) – A cyborg teenage boy, and Cleopatra's second teammate. His body is mostly robotic and is also sensitive of the fact that he was transformed into a cyborg. He is rather worrisome, paranoid, nervous, and self-conscious at times. He has a crush on Akila. He and Akila later have a foster child of sorts named Eyeball, who is voiced by Brian Posehn. Khensu (voiced by Sendhil Ramamurthy) – An intelligent, long-eared cat with the ability to speak. He serves as the leader of the group, and a teacher at P.Y.R.A.M.I.D. He becomes, as noted by showrunner Doug Langdale, like a surrogate father to Cleo, balancing out her action and acrobatics with his intellectual, sensible, and down-to-Earth nature. Mihos – The cute and lovable pet of Cleo. Later Doctor Queed says that Mihos can't be native to the planet but rather is a "lost pet." Boop, a female pirate and space squirrel, is his doppelgänger. Lilimar, in an interview, said that while she likes Brian and Akila as characters, Mihos is her favorite, even making a request to make him into a plushie.
Supporting Callie (voiced by Kari Wahlgren) – An arrogant and snobby student at P.Y.R.A.M.I.D. who becomes Cleopatra's academic rival upon her arrival in the school. She has fair skin, purple eyes and pale magenta long hair. Xerxs (voiced by Dee Bradley Baker) – Legions of alien robots who are the soldiers and servants of Octavian. Zaid Antonius (voiced by Xolo Maridueña) – A handsome student at P.Y.R.A.M.I.D., whom Cleopatra is in love with. He is later revealed to be a spy of Octavian, due to the latter holding his parents, Dahab (Candi Milo) and Askari (Dee Bradley Baker), hostages. His family name is a hint towards the historical figure Marcus Antonius. He is a composite of two characters - Antony, a master thief who becomes Cleopatra's love interest, and Zaid, a fellow student who dies protecting her from Octavius - from the graphic novels. Administrant Khepra (voiced by Sumalee Montano) – The head of the cat-council. She is the mother of Khensu. It was also revealed later on that she helped Octavian to destroy Cleopatra for the security of P.Y.R.A.M.I.D. Octavian (voiced by Jonathan Kite) – The main antagonist of the series. The evil ruler of the Xerxs who has destroyed or enslaved many worlds, and Cleopatra's arch-nemesis. He is bent on capturing and getting rid of Cleopatra so the prophecy about her defeating him cannot be fulfilled. Named after the historical figure Gaius Octavian. In episode 26 it's revealed that Octavian is Gozi. E'Geke-Ek'Gek (voiced by Alex Cazares) – an alien student who requires a translator torque to communicate. Yosira (voiced by Wahlgren) – The young Pharaoh of P.Y.R.A.M.I.D. She is the granddaughter of the founder of P.Y.R.A.M.I.D., the late Pharaoh Yosiro. Zuzz (voiced by Zach Callison) – A student whose body consists of a swarm of insect-shaped "bits". Omnia (voiced by Elise Dubois) – A robot representing a planet and part of the debate club at P.Y.R.A.M.I.D.
Other characters Professor Sitre (voiced by Amy Hill) – a middle-age cat teacher at P.Y.R.A.M.I.D. Philo (voiced by Gunnar Sizemore) – A young apprentice at P.Y.R.A.M.I.D., whom Cleopatra mentors in one episode in order to attain the cadets' Level 2. Zedge (voiced by Lucas Grabeel) – A popular intergalactic rockstar, whom Akila has a crush on and claims to be his "biggest fan". He was briefly mind-controlled by Octavian to capture Cleopatra. Cyrano (voiced by Greg Cipes) – An evil artificial intelligence created by Octavian to counter Brian. Gozi (voiced by Karan Brar) – A young Egyptian boy who was Cleopatra's best friend back on Earth in her own time. Msamaki (voiced by David Shaughnessy) – An intelligent, long-eared cat with the ability to speak, and a member of the Cat council. Professor Klabrax V (voiced by Dawnn Lewis) – An intelligent, fish-like being who is a professor at P.Y.R.A.M.I.D. Dr. Queed (voiced by Paul Rugg) – A former doctor at P.Y.R.A.M.I.D. and an acquaintance of Khensu whose catchphrase is "uncanny scientific brilliance!" Debbie (voiced by Candi Milo) – A lonely planet who can manifest into various forms and later a student at P.Y.R.A.M.I.D. Generator A.I. (voiced by Dee Bradley Baker) – An A.I. located nearby the academy which is used to generate electricity for the campus after Cleo sucks out all the power from the academy. Damaris (voiced by Marieve Herington) – A space scavenger, part of a group led by Dave. Dave (voiced by Ace Gibson) – Leader of the space scavengers and has a pet named Precious. Simon (voiced by Rhys Darby) – A conniving snake who turns on Akila, with Cleo and her parents working together to stop it. Gurbo Gorbage (voiced by Kay Bess) – A purported television personality who kidnaps Cleo and almost sends her to Octavian. Amsaja (voiced by Kimberly D. Brooks) – The self-declared "Queen of the Space Pirates," who heading a crew of three other pirates, and Cleo's doppelgänger. She previously had the telepathic space shark ninja as her ex-boyfriend, and Octavian might be her ex-boyfriend as well. Cyborg Dwayne – (voiced by Andrew Morgado) – The doppelgänger of Brian who is also on the pirate ship. Medjed (voiced by Ken Pringle) – Ruler of Dargham who tries to convince Cleo and Zaid to stay there indefinitely. Gled (voiced by John DiMaggio) – Chief of the Tawrisians on the planet Tawris in the Nile Galaxy. Commodore Winifred (voiced by Toks Olagundoye) – The commander of a ship of Parvites atop the head of Mihos, whose full name is Commodore Winifred Blurvington the Third. Mortimer (voiced by Damian O'Hare) – A lieutenant who serves under Commodore Winifred and resembles a proper British gentleman.
Production In January 2018, DreamWorks Animation filed trademark applications for the show to the United States Patent and Trademark Office. Since then, DreamWorks has filed for four extensions on their trademark for Cleopatra in Space, two times in 2019, and two times in 2020, all of which were granted.
Mike Maihack said that the series is in retroactive continuity to his comics because Cleo is a teenager and there is time travel. This differs from his comic book series which is "rooted from stories and research of the actual Cleopatra." He also may have been influenced by Kipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts, Avatar: The Last Airbender, Star Trek: The Next Generation, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and Legends of Tomorrow. In an interview with Charles C. Dowd on I Heart Webcomics on July 22, Maihack said that he consulted in the early stages of the show, letting DreamWorks know the upcoming details of his book and remained supportive, admitting he did not want "a direct adaption of the novels." He further said that he saw the animated series as an opportunity to work on the Cleo in Space concept in another way who had worked on Ben 10: Omniverse and DuckTales, noting that while it was clear that those working on the series understood "the core components of the story," he stepped back, letting the "amazingly talented folks" involved in the show do their work.