Bluey Director: "Great IP doesn’t build fandom on its own"

“Bluey is truly exceptional. The storytelling is warm. It's funny. It's relatable, and I think from the moment that people meet Bluey, there's a real engagement from that whole audience”, he opened by noting. “But scale conceals strategy. Affection is not the same as fandom, and popularity is not the same as having a strategy. Great IP doesn't decide which platforms to enter, doesn't recognise an emerging adult audience, and also doesn't brief a creator. Put simply, great IP doesn't automatically create fandom.” 

Bluey had 1.5bn hours of watch time in 2025, in spite of no new episodes being created that year. This is no accident, according to Clarke: “The first thing that we do for Bluey is we follow the audience. The starting label for Bluey was always preschool, but we quickly realised through those data signals that the audience behavior told a much richer story. Children were watching, but parents were also watching, and they weren't just supervising – they were participating.”  

YouTube has been a crucial component of this multi-channel, mutli-touchpoint strategy, Clarke emphasised. “For Bluey, this means having a full channel strategy with different entry points for different interests. It's really important for us to take a step back and to look at the power of YouTube. Connected TV viewing is soaring. We know that, but connected TVs are now a number one viewing device across all of our YouTube channels. YouTube really is driving that discovery, and it's really key to finding a new brand or a new product. This is why YouTube is the keystone of our ecosystem. We have one show, Bluey. We have 27 YouTube channels, and we'll be launching more soon. We have our main Bluey YouTube channel, but we've localised that into 19 different languages.” 

According to Clarke, 77% of US parents co-view YouTube with their children. “We saw older children growing with the brand, and we saw adults quoting, creating content, and sharing content. We saw emerging audiences on TikTok and jumped on that straightaway.” 

With this diversity of channels, there is constant value to be derived from monitoring the audience response – data is crucial, maintains Clarke. “It really is true that the comment section is not the end of the publishing process. It's the beginning of the next brief. Everything we create is rooted in data and fan responses. We listen to comments, check for repeat behaviors, and monitor community signals. Community management is a hugely important part of our process. It's something we invested hugely in from day one, and it's paid dividends for us.” 

One partnership highlighted by Clarke was with Lego – Bluey Lego shorts have received 53m global views, totalling 1m hours of watch time. “Watch time matters because it tells us people choose to stay. Return behavior tells us we're building habits, and comments and creations show we've got participation, and sharing recommendations show advocacy. While reach tells you someone noticed, it is fandom that tells you that someone cared. Great content builds attention, and culture builds that affinity. That relationship can then support sustainable commercial growth, but the order must never be reversed.” 

“Great IP, such as Bluey, gives you a remarkable beginning, but lasting fandom really is built on what comes next. The future won't belong simply to the broadcaster with the biggest audiences; it will belong to those who are willing to build relationships with the fans and the audiences directly”, he summarised.