User blog:AubreeRubble/History of Rugrats Popularity and Legacy

Rugrats is one of the most popular cartoons on Nickelodeon. It was successful, receiving an average of 26.7 million viewers every week: 14.7 million kids, 3.2 million teens, and 8.8 million adults. In addition, it was seen internationally in over 76 countries. The franchise has three movies, two spin-offs, and two crossovers (One of them is a movie). The series gained over 20 awards, received huge Nielsen ratings, generally has positive reception, and has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame since 2001. It also had generated an estimated $1.4 billion in merchandise sales as of March 1999. The franchise has nine Kids Choice Awards nominations and won a Kids Choice Award for Favorite Cartoon from 1996-2001. The Rugrats Movie also won an award for Favorite Movie in 1999. As of right now, the revival has been premiered on Paramount+ today.

Series and Spin-offs
When the series aired its first three seasons during the early-90s, it was not very popular, as its popularity was overshadowed by another Nicktoon, Ren & Stimpy, which was popular until [at least] 1994. When production for new episodes went on hiatus in 1993, Nickelodeon began to show Rugrats repeats everyday. People began to notice the show more, as popularity started to grow. In 1995, it became the highest-rated show on Nickelodeon, the highest-rated Nicktoon, and the highest-rated kids' show; this legacy continued until 2000, when Spongebob Squarepants' popularity grew larger and took over. In June 1996, the series resumed production with three specials and debuted the fourth season in 1997. When "Mother's Day" aired, it became the highest-rated Rugrats episode on Nickelodeon for kids ages 2-11; for that age group, it earned an 8.4 rating. During that time, the series aired on SNICK from 1997 to 2001.

On June 28, 2001, the series received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and [currently] became the only Nicktoon to receive it. Nearly a month later, "All Growed Up" aired on television and became the most-viewed episode of the series, the highest-rated Nickelodeon program, and the cable's #1 show for the week ending July 22, 2001, with the total of 12 million viewers, earning a 7.2 Nielsen rating. It also became the highest-rated premiere for Rugrats, as well as the highest ratings for any Nickelodeon premiere in general. The success of this episode made Nickelodeon commission a series with tweens and adolescents, which is later revealed to be called All Grown Up!. Another spin-off is made with new animation, which is called Rugrats Pre-School Daze. However, the miniseries only aired in the UK during 2005 and did not make it to the US until 2008. The last episode aired on August 1, 2004, and continued to have reruns until December 31, 2007, although the Christmas special "Babies in Toyland" continued to air every Christmas through 2012. The series returned to Nickelodeon twice: first from December 27, 2010 until mid 2011, and again for a one off marathon coinciding with the Super Bowl on February 3, 2013. After the Super Bowl marathon, Nickelodeon aired reruns in the 6 and 6:30 am hours on weekends until April 28, 2013. The series made its next return five years after that by airing a couple episodes of the Rugrats on the main Nick channel starting on Saturday, February 10, 2018 and leading up to the airing of "Be My Valentine" on Wednesday, February 14. The show could also be seen on Nick Jr. for a brief time. As of right now, the series is on TeenNick's block, NickRewind.

Movies
When The Rugrats Movie was released, it made $27,321,470 in its opening weekend, from 2,782 theaters, averaging about $9,821 per venue and ranking as the #1 movie that weekend. It also became the first non-Disney animated film to reach over $100 million dollars at the domestic box office. In total, The Rugrats Movie made $140,894,675, $100,494,675 from the domestic market, and $40,400,000 from its foreign release. The film was released in the UK on March 26, 1999, and topped the country's box office for the next three weekends. It was the highest grossing film based on a television program until it was surpassed by The Simpsons Movie in 2007. The film received generally mixed reviews from critics.

When Rugrats in Paris: The Movie was released in the US, it opened at #2, grossing $22,718,184 in its opening weekend for an average of $7,743 from 2,934 venues. In the UK, it opened at #3. The film grossed $76.5 million in North America and $26.8 million in other territories for a worldwide total of $103.3 million. Unlike The Rugrats Movie, the film received generally positive reviews from critics.

When Rugrats Go Wild was released, it opened at #4 with Finding Nemo at the #1 spot. The film grossed $39.4 million domestically and $55.4 million worldwide. This is the most unsuccessful film of the franchise. It also received more negative reviews than the previous movies from critics.

Administrator's Note: I apologize if I wasn't active very much. I have been busy with others and trying to keep on track on Recess Wiki since I am an active bureaucrat on there.