Andy Samberg and Neil Campbell Unearth Comedy Gold in ‘Digman!’

Andy Samberg and Neil Campbell have known each other since their time on Brooklyn Nine-Nine, but their shared love of animation and absurdist humor found especially fertile ground with Digman!, their animated action-adventure series on Comedy Central. Set in a world where archaeologists are treated as celebrities – the coolest people in the world, Digman! is one part Indiana Jones, several parts The Simpsons, filtered through the duo’s off-kilter comedic lens.

The pair created the show and serve as writers and executive producers. Campbell also serves as showrunner, while Samberg also stars as the rather slipshod protagonist, Rip Digman. CBS Studios produces; Titmouse executive produces, via Chris Prynoski, Shannon Prynoski, Antonio Canobbio, and Ben Kalina.

With Season 2 debuting today, July 23, it was only fitting that AWN checked in with the pair to discuss their show.

“We had talked often about wanting to make a project together that we drove, that could have any joke in it that we possibly could think of,” Samberg explains. “Immediately because of that, we started talking about doing it animated.” The two were deeply inspired by the comedies they grew up on — The Simpsons, Futurama, South Park, and more recently, Rick and Morty. Animation offered a level of creative freedom that live-action never could. “It allows you to push the boundaries of reality and tone and explore different worlds at essentially the same budget,” Samberg notes.

The genesis of the series stemmed from Samberg’s impression of iconic, and often teased, actor Nicolas Cage, which he developed during his tenure on Saturday Night Live. “The jumping off point was my impression of Nick Cage,” Sandberg shares. “I have not been shy about that. I loved writing in that character because it very quickly became less of an impression and more of just a new character who was this lunatic who spoke in flowery prose. It brought me a lot of joy.”

The archeology conceit grew from there. “He [Cage] was involved with National Treasure,” Samberg adds. “We also started talking and laughing about Indiana Jones and how we all grew up watching it. It led us to believe that archaeologists had the most exciting, sexy lives and looked like Harrison Ford.” In the world of Digman!, archaeologists are, indeed, that glamorous — a conceit that’s played for laughs while allowing for a rotating cast of relics, ruins, and outrageous escapades.

Campbell echoes the sentiment. “The Simpsons probably created my sense of humor,” he explains. “But at the same time, I watched Vampire Hunter D on the Syfy Network every week and rented Akira. So, something that let us combine super funny comedy with the action-adventure genre was really enticing.”

The pair began brainstorming the idea in 2018. “The first time we met in person was October 2018, but we didn't write the script until 2020,” Campbell recalls. Before even pitching, they wrote a full pilot and enlisted artist to begin the visualization process. “We met with a few animation studios,” Campbell says, “but friends like Scott Gairdner (Moonbeam City) and Nick Kroll (Big Mouth) recommended Titmouse. The meeting with them went great, and we just got hooked up — even before we were picked up to series.”

Titmouse, known for its edgy, distinctive style, helped bring the team’s nostalgic vision to life. “We wanted it to look and feel almost like the cel animation from when we were younger,” Samberg says. “And we love Titmouse.”

Despite Samberg’s extensive background in live-action comedy and voice work, producing an animated series was a new frontier. The transition was not without its challenges, though ultimately it was liberating. “As a writer, it's like heaven,” he says. “You never have to settle for what you originally wrote. You just keep chipping away at it. Who knows — you write something funny, but it's not landing, so you think of 20 more things and try them out.” Samberg and Campbell often Zoom together to record new lines, experimenting in real time with their post team, fine-tuning every joke until it lands. “And we have an incredible production team that will pop something in, see how it feels… maybe it needs this, maybe try this new idea,” Campbell notes. “That’s a very long way of saying animation is very freeing. It’s fantastic.”

That freedom, they say, is the most rewarding part of working in animation. “There’s no concept or joke we can think of that we’re not allowed to do or try,” Samberg says. “In the eight years doing Brooklyn Nine-Nine, which I loved, as a network show, there was a lot of ‘Well, that’s funny but you can’t do that,’ or ‘That would be cool, but we can’t afford that.’ Here, if we want to do an episode where there's a gigantic blimp city in the sky and Amelia Earhart is alive as a half-cyborg, we can. It’s not going to cost more. Obviously, it’s a lot of work for the artists, but it's not going to cost more like the difference between making an indie film versus a blockbuster.”

Campbell agrees, adding that the extended timeline of animation allows for greater creative refinement. “You go from the boards to the animatic to getting the color correction back… and you realize there are some super talented, amazing people working on this. Whether it's a character design or the way a scene is animated, you're constantly surprised. You’re working with people that make sure every frame looks really cool. They’re so talented. It’s awesome.”

That sense of playfulness extends to the character of Rip Digman himself. “It feels like there’s no lid on it,” Samberg says. “We’ve come up with bits for Rip that I would never do live — they’re too fucked up or too extensive — but in animation, you can try anything. Often, it ends with him in a complete spiral and emotional breakdown. That stuff really makes me laugh.”

Campbell jumps in and adds, “The exaggerated delivery that might feel over-the-top in live-action fits perfectly in animation. A line read can be so over the top that it would seem like bad acting in live-action, but in animation, it could be the funniest thing. Some of Rip’s whiniest lines just make me laugh so much.”

The Season 2 cast also includes a notable roster of guest stars: Fred Armisen (Saturday Night Live), Stephanie Beatriz (Encanto), Beck Bennett (Saturday Night Live), Flula Borg (The Suicide Squad 2), Beth Grant (Donnie Darko), Dennis Haysbert (The Unit), Mike Hanford (writer, The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon), Mark Hamill (The Life of Chuck), Rachel Kaly (Late Night with Seth Meyers), Tom Kenny (SpongeBob SquarePants), Nathan Lane (Mid-Century Modern), Lauren Lapkus (The Wrong Missy), Tatiana Maslany (The Monkey), Seth Meyers (Late Night with Seth Meyers), Kayvan Novak (What We Do in the Shadows), Claudia O'Doherty (Killing It), Artemis Pebdani (It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia), Anne Ramsay (Mad About You), Amy Sedaris(Strangers with Candy), Rekha Shankar (Best Friends Forever), Jorma Taccone (director, Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping), Carl Tart (writer, Saturday Night Live), Whitmer Thomas (Friendship), Geraldine Viswanathan (Thunderbolts), John Waters (Serial Mom), Kate Winslet (Lee), and Jeffrey Wright (American Fiction).

And while the production does encourage improvisation, they keep the structure tight. “We always get it scripted until we’re satisfied,” Samberg says. “Then, if someone has improv chops, of course we want their input.” They also prepare multiple alternatives for lines. “Sometimes you’re like, ‘Didn’t think that one was going to be the winner,’ but then the spin someone like Nathan Lane puts on it really makes it the best version of the joke,” Campbell adds.

The result is a series that’s chaotic in spirit but tightly constructed. It reflects the duo’s wide-ranging comedic influences — from absurdist sketch to animated classics — and a clear affection for the medium’s possibilities. “We try to incorporate all the different things we’ve done throughout our careers,” Samberg shares. “It’s a big swirling amalgam of ideas.”

With its second season streaming today and a devoted following in place, Digman! stands as a testament to what happens when comedians embrace the creative elasticity of animation. For Samberg and Campbell, it’s a medium that doesn’t just allow — but demands — that they go as far as their imaginations can take them. Which, in their case, is quite a distance.

Dan Sarto is Publisher and Editor-in-Chief of Animation World Network.