Sonny with a Chance
Sonny with a Chance is an American sitcom created by Steve Marmel which aired for two seasons on Disney Channel from February 8, 2009 to January 2, 2011. The series follows the experiences of teenager Sonny Munroe, portrayed by Demi Lovato, who becomes the newest accepted cast member of her favorite sketch comedy television show, "So Random!". "Sonny with a Chance" was the first Disney Channel Original Series to be shot and aired in high-definition from the beginning. Like most of Disney Channel's sitcoms, it is shot on tape but uses a "filmized" appearance . In the second season, some scenes were shot on location. The series is one of the three Disney Channel Original Series to feature a show-within-a-show, along with "The Famous Jett Jackson" and "Shake It Up". In June 2009, "Sonny with a Chance" was renewed for a second season, which premiered in March 2010 to 6.3 million viewers. Disney Channel had originally renewed the series for a third season in November 2010, but Lovato's role was uncertain at the time after Lovato checked into treatment for personal struggles two weeks prior. Production of the third season commenced  without Lovato in January 2011, focusing on the "So Random!" aspect rather than behind the scenes. In April 2011, Disney Channel confirmed that Lovato would not be returning to the series' lead role and "Sonny with a Chance" would not return, choosing instead to rebrand the already-renewed third season as a spin-off titled "So Random!". The spin-off aired for a single season before being cancelled. The show became available to stream on Disney+ on April 3, 2020 along with "So Random!". The original cast reunited for a 30-minute virtual reunion titled, "Sonny With a Chance: A  So Random Reunion", which was released on April 25, 2020. Production. Development. The original working title for the series was "Sketchpad!", and the original name for the main character was Molly Munroe. The show's title was later changed to "Welcome to Mollywood". After the first publicity materials about the show were released, the lead character's name was then changed to Holli and the title changed once again to "Welcome to Holliwood". The main character's name was later changed to Sonny Munroe, and the show's title was changed for a final time to "Sonny with a Chance . The name is a play on the words Sunny with a chance of rain", as heard in weather forecasts, reflecting the many comical situations in which the cast find themselves in each episode. Bridgit Mendler was among many actresses whom auditioned for the title role, but Lovato was eventually cast. "Sonny with a Chance" has a show-within-a-show, "So Random!", complete with fully produced sketches. The show's executive producer Brian Robbins previously wrote for and served as an executive producer on the real-life kids sketch comedy series "All That" and "The Amanda Show" for Nickelodeon. Gary  Marsh, president of entertainment, Disney Channel Worldwide, stated "This series is rooted in one of the core thematic attributes that we stand for, which is following your dreams, there also was the opportunity to do a hybrid show." The show began production on September 15, 2008 and the first season was taped at Stage 11 at NBC Studios in Burbank, California; for the second season, the show's production moved to Hollywood Center Studios in Hollywood, California, where "The Suite Life on Deck", "Wizards of Waverly Place" and "Jonas" were also filmed. Demi Lovato's departure and "So Random!". It  was announced on November 12, 2010 that the third season would begin production without Lovato, due to Lovato's recovering from health issues. Instead, the series focused on the sketch/comedy/music-variety show "So Random!", centering on guest stars, sketches, digital shorts, and musical performances, a similar format to "Saturday Night Live", but targeted at a much younger audience. Production of the third season began on January 30, 2011. On April 19, 2011, People.com reported that Demi Lovato would not be returning for the third season. As a result, the show was renamed "So Random!" and focused on the  sketches rather than the behind-the-scenes antics. As a result of Lovato's departure from "Sonny with a Chance", the series became the second Disney Channel original series to have its lead actor/actress leave during the series' run (after "So Weird"), and the fourth Disney Channel series to have a main cast member leave the series during its run (with "That's So Raven" and "Jonas" also included). The third season was then turned into its own new series based on the new format. Other media. Shows within the show. "So Random!" is a comedy sketch series that  employs most of the main cast. It often causes the cast of "Sonny with a Chance" to dress in ridiculous costumes, and act out nonsensical situations. This was a spin-off to its own series after Lovato's departure. The enemies of the "So Random!" group, "Mackenzie Falls" is a tween drama series featuring comedic overacting. The show is similar to "Dawson's Creek" and "Gossip Girl", among others. The show's name, "Mackenzie Falls", comes from Chad's character's name and the name of the town (which is located near a waterfall). In the season two episode "The  Legend of Candy Face", the cast of "So Random!" made a parody of "Mackenzie Falls" titled "Mackenzie Stalls", which was set in a bathroom. Minisodes and promos can be seen on the "Sonny with a Chance" website along with one minisode as a bonus feature on the DVD. Theme song and opening sequence. The show's theme song "So Far, So Great", was written and produced by Jeanne Lurie, Chen Neeman and Aristedis "Aris" Archontis, who have each written songs for several artists on Disney-owned Hollywood Records. It is performed by series actor Demi Lovato. The theme is of  pop-rock style (the music cues composed by Chris Alan Lee and Scott Clausen, signaling scene changes and commercial breaks are styled similarly). A full-length version of this theme was released via the Radio Disney network on March 31, 2009, less than two months after the show's U.S. premiere. The theme song is also featured as a track on the Disney compilation album, "Disney Channel Playlist", released by Walt Disney Records on June 9, 2009. The song is also available as the bonus track on Lovato's second album "Here We Go Again", released by Hollywood Records on  July 21, 2009. In the Russian version of the series ("Дайте Санни шанс" aka Give Sonny a Chance), the cast members' names are rendered in Cyrillic—and the intro is performed by a different Russian girl in Russian (not by Demi Lovato). Otherwise, in translation the intro music is not changed. In the Brazilian Portuguese version ("Sunny Entre Estrelas"), the intro music is sung in translation. Merchandise. The soundtrack was released by Walt Disney Records on October 5, 2010. It was preceded by the single "Me, Myself and Time", was released on August 3, 2010. "Sonny with a Chance" is  a video game published by Disney Interactive Studios for the Nintendo DS. It was released on March 16, 2010 in America. Home media. The complete first season, containing all three volume, was released in Poland on May 7, 2010, in Czech Republic on June 9, 2010, and in Spain on November 10, 2010. Broadcast. The series originally premiered on February 8, 2009 on Disney Channel, Family Channel, and Disney Channel (UK and Ireland). In Australia it premiered on April 27, 2009 on Disney Channel and on February 13, 2010 on Seven Network. In New Zealand the series premiered on April  27, 2009 on Disney Channel and on August 15, 2010 on TV2. The series started airing on May 22, 2009 on Disney Channel (India), on September 5, 2009 on Disney Channel (Europe, Middle East and Africa), and on October 17, 2009 on Disney Channel (Southeast Asia). The second season originally premiered on March 14, 2010. It premiered on April 5, 2010 in Canada and on April 23, 2010 in the UK and Ireland. In New Zealand it premiered on May 10, 2010 on Disney Channel. In Australia it started on the same date on Disney Channel and on February 12 , 2011 on Seven Network. It premiered on November 20, 2010 in India, on May 1, 2010 in the EMEA region and on April 3, 2011 in Southeast Asia. Reception. U.S. television ratings. The most watched episode of the series was "Walk a Mile in My Pants" with 6.3 million viewers. The episode "Gassie Passes" is the least watched episode, scoring 2.9 million viewers.