EXCLUSIVE: Genius Brands CEO Talks Growth Accelerated By Stan Lee, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Shaquille O'Neal, Rob Gronkowski

Genius Brands International Inc GNUS announced better-than-expected second-quarter financial results Monday.

Genius Brands CEO Andy Heyward appeared on Benzinga's YouTube show "Power Hour" for an exclusive interview Monday.

Genius Brands reported quarterly revenue of $2.3 million, representing a 318% increase year over year. Unique users of the company's Kartoon Channel were up 932% year over year. 

Genius Brands saw growth in all of its key business segments, Heyward told Benzinga. 

Related Link: Genius Brands Stock Breaks Bullish Through A Pattern: Will It Hold?

Superhero Kindergarten: The popularithy of Stan Lee's "Superhero Kindergarten" popularity is rapidly increasing, which Heyward attributed to the involvement of the late Lee and Arnold Shwarzenegger.

Genius brands put a lot of effort into promoting the show, and it really paid off for the kids media company, he said. 

"We have over 2,000 episodes of programming licensed on Kartoon Channel and Superhero Kindergarten — when we debuted it — took off like a rocket ship and it now has all of the top 10 most viewed programs," Heyward told Benzinga.

Genius Brands is already starting to think about a second season of the show and is in talks with multiple parties for a live action motion picture based on "Superhero Kindergarten," he said. 

"One show can change the course of an entire network. 'Superhero Kindergarten' has done that."

Shaq's Garage: Genius Brands has started production of its "Shaq's Garage" show, featuring NBA legend Shaquille O'Neal, which is set to air in the second quarter of 2022.

O'Neal is a successful businessman and shareholder in Genius Brands, Heyward said: "He is involved in every aspect of this production."

The show features animated vehicles. There are no people; rather the cast will be voices of the featured car characters, he said.

The company announced Monday that NFL player Rob Gronkowski will be the co-executive producer and the voice of the "Gronkmobile" in the show. 

Gronkowski is one of the most well-known personalities in the NFL, Heyward said: "We think he is going to bring a lot of excitement to the show."

He told Benzinga that Genius Brands aims to have more of the cars in "Shaq's Garage" voiced by celebrities. 

Heyward went on to talk about advertising revenue, the possibility of NFTs, other upcoming shows and more. 

See the full interview here:

GNUS Price Action: Genius Brands has traded as high as $3.12 and as low as 94 cents over a 52-week period.

At last check Monday, the stock was down 1.29% at $1.52.