In 2003, five men sitting in a living room in Austin, Texas, decided to make a video game series using a game engine they had no business using, and they did it while drunk. Burnie Burns, Matt Hullum, Geoff Ramsey, Jason Saldaña, Gus Sorola, and Joel Heyman were not professional filmmakers. They were friends who had met while working at a local telecommunications company and attending the University of Texas at Austin. Their first project, The Schedule, was a 1997 independent film that had limited success but served as the catalyst for their future collaboration. The group initially created drunkgamers.com, a website where they reviewed video games while intoxicated, a venture that incurred the wrath of several game developers who refused to give them free games. The name Rooster Teeth itself emerged from a euphemism for an insult used in their early Red vs. Blue trailer, a touchstone that would define their brand identity. They changed the name from Drunk Tank Podcast to Rooster Teeth because nobody would sponsor a show with drunk in the title, a decision that signaled their transition from hobbyists to a serious media entity. The first episode of Red vs. Blue premiered in April 2003, and within a single day, the series received 20,000 downloads, a number that brought Rooster Teeth to fame and forced them to confront the reality of their growing audience. The founders created a subscription model called Sponsorships, later rebranded as FIRST, to cover the massive server and web hosting costs that threatened to bankrupt them. This early financial struggle defined their business strategy, which relied on a hybrid model of subscriptions, ads, and merchandise to survive. The company's core philosophy was simple: they only made content that they would want to see, a genuine space that resonated with their audience. As of 2017, the production cost for a single episode varied from $15,000 to $100,000, a significant investment for a company that started with nothing but a dream and a few computers. The company's success was attributed to maintaining their community site, and they were initially reluctant to join YouTube, viewing the platform as a competitor. In 2014, having signed a two-year lease, the entire company, then consisting of over 90 employees, moved into Stage 5 at Austin Studios, marking a new era of professional production. The company's first feature film, Lazer Team, was released in 2015, a science fiction action comedy that was the second most funded film project on Indiegogo, raising just under $2.5 million. The company hosted an annual convention, RTX, from 2011 to 2023 in Austin, Texas, and additionally in Sydney and London, becoming a cornerstone of the gaming and animation community. As of September 2021, Rooster Teeth's primary YouTube channel had 9.18 million subscribers and over 6 billion video views, with all channels combined maintaining over 45 million subscribers. On the 6th of March 2024, Rooster Teeth announced that the company would shut down, citing fundamental shifts in consumer behavior and monetization across platforms, advertising, and patronage. The number of subscribers to Rooster Teeth's First service had dropped to around one-quarter of their peak, and the company had been unprofitable for a decade. In February 2025, Burns acquired the Rooster Teeth brand and some of its remaining intellectual property through his company Box Canyon Productions, signaling a potential rebirth of the company's legacy.
Red vs. Blue, the company's first production, premiered in April 2003 and quickly became the third longest-running episodic web series of all time. The series was a parody of science fiction films and games, as well as military life, telling the story of two groups of soldiers fighting a civil war in a desolate and isolated box canyon. Initially, Rooster Teeth expected the series to consist of only six to eight episodes, but the series quickly became very popular, receiving 20,000 downloads in a single day. The series was created using the Halo game engine, a technique known as machinima, which allowed the creators to use the game's assets to tell a story. The series was a critical and commercial success, and it helped to establish Rooster Teeth as a major player in the online video space. The series was followed by a number of other machinima productions, including The Strangerhood, a comedy series that centers on eight strangers who awake one day unaware of where they are or how they arrived there. The Strangerhood's first season of 17 episodes completed on the 27th of April 2006, and the series won an award for Best Editing at the 2005 Machinima Film Festival. The series was followed by a number of other machinima productions, including PANICS, a short series filmed on F.E.A.R. that chronicles the misadventures of Bravo Team, a group of soldiers sent to investigate a paranormal disturbance. The series won an award for Best Writing at the 2005 Machinima Film Festival. The series was followed by a number of other machinima productions, including 1-800-Magic, a four-episode mini-series created in 2006 using the game Shadowrun, and Supreme Surrender, a 2008 mini-series made using Supreme Commander. The series was followed by a number of other machinima productions, including The Slow Mo Guys, a science and technology entertainment web series from Thame, England, United Kingdom created by Gavin Free, starring himself and Daniel Gruchy. The series consists of a wide variety of things filmed in extreme slow motion using a range of Vision Research Phantom high-speed cameras, capable of shooting over 1,500,000 frames per second. The series premiered on the 15th of October 2010, and was picked up by Rooster Teeth in 2013. The series was followed by a number of other machinima productions, including Day 5, a post-apocalypse short series that initially followed a man fighting to stay awake after a virus spreads that causes anyone who falls asleep to die. The series premiered on the 19th of June 2016, and was the company's first premium exclusive show. The series was followed by a number of other machinima productions, including Immersion, a series in which Burnie Burns and Gus Sorola test the concepts of video games in real life. The series premiered in November 2015, and was followed by a number of other machinima productions, including The Slow Mo Guys, a science and technology entertainment web series from Thame, England, United Kingdom created by Gavin Free, starring himself and Daniel Gruchy. The series consists of a wide variety of things filmed in extreme slow motion using a range of Vision Research Phantom high-speed cameras, capable of shooting over 1,500,000 frames per second. The series premiered on the 15th of October 2010, and was picked up by Rooster Teeth in 2013. The series was followed by a number of other machinima productions, including Day 5, a post-apocalypse short series that initially followed a man fighting to stay awake after a virus spreads that causes anyone who falls asleep to die. The series premiered on the 19th of June 2016, and was the company's first premium exclusive show.
RWBY And The Rise Of Animated Series
RWBY, pronounced Ruby, is an anime-styled CG-animated web series that was created and directed by animator Monty Oum, and written by Miles Luna and Kerry Shawcross. The first episode of RWBY premiered on the 5th of July 2013, at RTX 2013 and was released on the Rooster Teeth site on the 18th of July 2013. The story takes place in the world of Remnant, which is filled with supernatural forces and shadowy creatures known as the Creatures of Grimm. Prior to the events of the series, mankind waged a battle of survival against the Grimm before discovering the power of a mysterious element called Dust, which allowed them to fight back against the monsters. On the 1st of February 2015, Oum died due to a severe allergic reaction during a medical procedure, but the series he created continues. The success of RWBY also resulted in a secondary series by Rooster Teeth, RWBY Chibi, which features the show's main characters in chibi form, with a focus on comedic elements and humor. In July 2024, the RWBY franchise was purchased by Viz Media, who stated their intentions to continue the main web series along with RWBY showrunner and former Rooster Teeth employee Kerry Shawcross. They also stated their intentions to produce RWBY merchandise and search for ways to widely distribute the series via streaming platforms and home video releases. The series was followed by a number of other animated series, including Camp Camp, a series that focuses on a young boy named Max, voiced by Michael Jones, who is forced to go to summer camp but makes two friends there who help him constantly torment their camp counselor, David, voiced by Miles Luna. The series premiered on the 10th of June 2016, as part of Rooster Teeth's Summer of Animation promotion. The series was followed by a number of other animated series, including gen:LOCK, a mecha action drama series by RWBY producer, Gray G. Haddock. The series premiered on the 26th of January 2019, and was renewed for a second season, which premiered first on HBO Max on the 4th of November 2021, and concluded on December 23. The series was followed by a number of other animated series, including Nomad of Nowhere, a western-fantasy hybrid focused on a mute wanderer hunted for being capable of using magic to give life to inanimate objects. The series premiered on the 16th of March 2018, and was followed by a number of other animated series, including The Slow Mo Guys, a science and technology entertainment web series from Thame, England, United Kingdom created by Gavin Free, starring himself and Daniel Gruchy. The series consists of a wide variety of things filmed in extreme slow motion using a range of Vision Research Phantom high-speed cameras, capable of shooting over 1,500,000 frames per second. The series premiered on the 15th of October 2010, and was picked up by Rooster Teeth in 2013. The series was followed by a number of other animated series, including Day 5, a post-apocalypse short series that initially followed a man fighting to stay awake after a virus spreads that causes anyone who falls asleep to die. The series premiered on the 19th of June 2016, and was the company's first premium exclusive show.
The Business Of Community And Content
Rooster Teeth's business strategy was a hybrid model composed of subscriptions, preroll ads, YouTube preroll ads, licensed studio productions, branded merchandise, and annual live events. The company's videos were regularly released on its own website and app while podcasts and Let's Plays were published on their YouTube channel as well. As of September 2021, Rooster Teeth's primary YouTube channel has 9.18 million subscribers and has over 6 billion video views. Including all of their other channels, they maintain over 45 million subscribers. The company's success was attributed to maintaining their community site, and they were initially reluctant to join YouTube, viewing the platform as a competitor. In 2014, having signed a two-year lease, the entire company, then consisting of over 90 employees, moved into Stage 5 at Austin Studios, marking a new era of professional production. The company's first feature film, Lazer Team, was released in 2015, a science fiction action comedy that was the second most funded film project on Indiegogo, raising just under $2.5 million. The company hosted an annual convention, RTX, from 2011 to 2023 in Austin, Texas, and additionally in Sydney and London, becoming a cornerstone of the gaming and animation community. As of September 2021, Rooster Teeth's primary YouTube channel had 9.18 million subscribers and over 6 billion video views, with all channels combined maintaining over 45 million subscribers. On the 6th of March 2024, Rooster Teeth announced that the company would shut down, citing fundamental shifts in consumer behavior and monetization across platforms, advertising, and patronage. The number of subscribers to Rooster Teeth's First service had dropped to around one-quarter of their peak, and the company had been unprofitable for a decade. In February 2025, Burns acquired the Rooster Teeth brand and some of its remaining intellectual property through his company Box Canyon Productions, signaling a potential rebirth of the company's legacy. The company's first feature film, Lazer Team, was released in 2015, a science fiction action comedy that was the second most funded film project on Indiegogo, raising just under $2.5 million. The company hosted an annual convention, RTX, from 2011 to 2023 in Austin, Texas, and additionally in Sydney and London, becoming a cornerstone of the gaming and animation community. As of September 2021, Rooster Teeth's primary YouTube channel had 9.18 million subscribers and over 6 billion video views, with all channels combined maintaining over 45 million subscribers. On the 6th of March 2024, Rooster Teeth announced that the company would shut down, citing fundamental shifts in consumer behavior and monetization across platforms, advertising, and patronage. The number of subscribers to Rooster Teeth's First service had dropped to around one-quarter of their peak, and the company had been unprofitable for a decade. In February 2025, Burns acquired the Rooster Teeth brand and some of its remaining intellectual property through his company Box Canyon Productions, signaling a potential rebirth of the company's legacy.
Acquisitions And Corporate Turmoil
In November 2014, Rooster Teeth was acquired by Fullscreen for an undisclosed amount. Rooster Teeth agreed to be bought to give itself the resources and tools needed to compete against other producers. Burns elaborated by saying they considered Netflix, HBO, and Amazon their current competition. On the 3rd of February 2015, Burns confirmed that Rooster Teeth would be establishing an office in Los Angeles. These offices were used by a whole new division, Funhaus. The company released their feature film debut in 2015 with Lazer Team, a science fiction comedy. In 2016, Rooster Teeth hired three content executives to help with audience expansion: Luis Medina as senior VP of Partnerships, Evan Bregman as Director of Programming and Ryan P. Hall as Head of Development. It was announced that Medina would co-manage the Let's Play family with Ramsey, including Achievement Hunter, Funhaus, and ScrewAttack, and manage partnerships with third-party brands such as Cow Chop and Kinda Funny. Bregman will be responsible for programming strategy and boosting growth across all platforms such as apps, the community site, YouTube, and Facebook. Hall will oversee Rooster Teeth's development slate and lead efforts to identify up-and-coming projects and talent. Each year, the company participated in Extra Life, a gaming-themed fundraiser with Rooster Teeth's proceeds going to Dell Children's Medical Center of Central Texas. During their 2017 Extra Life stream, they raised a total of US$1,209,970.73. The 2018 Extra Life stream raised US$1,417,288 for Extra Life and Dell Children's Medical Center. The 2019 Extra Life stream raised US$1,222,371. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Rooster Teeth shortened the 2020 stream to 12 hours. It raised a total of US$1,163,801 for Dell Children's Medical Center. On the 26th of January 2018, Fullscreen President and former COO Ezra Cooperstein was appointed as President of Rooster Teeth. In May 2018, Rooster Teeth piloted five shows named Branded, Gorq's Quest, Achievement Haunter, Million Dollars, But ... Animated, and Rooster Teeth's Murder Room, and also announced Spikeface, a new 2D/dark comedy show to be coproduced with Rob McElhenney and his RCG Productions. In December 2018, Otter Media restructured Fullscreen, consolidating Rooster Teeth, along with Crunchyroll and VRV, under Ellation. The companies will align sales efforts to attract advertising and partnerships. During the transition, Otter Media CEO Tony Goncalves highlighted the foundation of increased programming quality at Rooster Teeth, pledging changes to the company would be minimal in order to preserve the brand. Machinima was to be subsumed into Fullscreen. On the 18th of December 2018, Rooster Teeth added to their overall content library by partnering with animation channels CypherDen and Flashgitz, premiering their future content on Rooster Teeth First. On the 31st of January 2019, Yvonne Secretan, COO of Rooster Teeth, announced her retirement. Ezra Cooperstein stepped down as President of Rooster Teeth on the 26th of April 2019. On the 12th of September 2019, Hullum announced Rooster Teeth had laid off 13% of its workforce, approximately 50 employees. Two weeks after announcing the layoffs, Jordan Levin was named general manager with most of Rooster Teeth's founders stepping down into creative roles: Matt Hullum stepped down as CEO and became Chief Content Officer, Burnie Burns stepped down as chief creative officer to executive producer and Geoff Ramsey became executive creative director. In December 2019, Rooster Teeth promoted Doreen Copeland to VP, Head of Production, and Joe Clary and Sean Hinz to Co-Heads of Animation, leading day-to-day operations across all of Rooster Teeth's animated productions; Clary and Hinz will report to Copeland, who will oversee all physical production. In June 2020, Heyman said that he was laid off from Rooster Teeth and would no longer perform in Red vs. Blue. Burns resigned in June 2020, maintaining a first-look deal with Rooster Teeth. In August 2020, Rooster Teeth announced it was reviewing its online content library as part of a diversity initiative. In April 2021, it was reported that AT&T was looking to sell Rooster Teeth and that the company's revenue had dropped nearly $20 million in 2019. However, no such sale occurred and the company was included in the completed merger that formed Warner Bros. Discovery in April 2022. In the month before, Rooster Teeth and WarnerMedia Access announced the creation of the Rooster Teeth Digital Creators Program, which is intended to support underrepresented talent. On the 1st of April 2023, the company turned 20 years old and as part of celebrations, Rooster Teeth ran a 20-week campaign, bringing back deep cuts, one-off episodes and fan favorites every week according to Matt Hullum, leading up to a big finale at the 2023 RTX Convention taking place the 7th of July 9 in Austin. As part of its twentieth year, the company rebranded, changing its logo from a rooster icon and a wind-up set of novelty teeth to a stylized R with the appearance of a rooster and changing to a red and blue color scheme from the original red and black. The company's new slogan is Just Playing. On the 6th of March 2024, general manager Jordan Levin notified employees that the company would close over the next several months. In an email, he cited reasons for the shutdown including fundamental shifts in consumer behavior and monetization across platforms, advertising, and patronage, with it being reported that the number of subscribers to Rooster Teeth's First service had dropped to around one-quarter of their peak and that Rooster Teeth as a whole had been unprofitable for a decade. While the Roost Podcast Network planned to remain in operation while Warner Bros. Discovery sought a buyer, Warner also gauged interest in Rooster Teeth's intellectual property, including RWBY, Red vs. Blue and Gen:Lock. In April 2024, The Roost Podcast Network would be sold to the talent management company Night, and in July 2024, the RWBY franchise would be sold to Viz Media. Some employees continued working in order to finalize the shutdown and, for a time, it remained unclear when the company will close entirely. Most employees left on the 10th of May 2024, with the website updated to a final goodbye message on the 15th of May 2024. Following the closure, several of the former talent and staff members from Rooster Teeth continued to work together in new ventures. On the 5th of February 2025, Burns announced he had acquired the Rooster Teeth brand and some of its remaining intellectual property through his company Box Canyon Productions. Some Rooster Teeth productions are set to return, alongside a reimagining of Burns' first film, The Schedule, and a new audio adventure, Again. On August 7, after a period of being in open beta, the website relaunched, as announced on Burns' podcast Morning Somewhere.
Scandals And The End Of An Era
In February 2019, Rooster Teeth announced that they had ended all associations with voice actor Vic Mignogna and removed him from the RWBY cast. Although there were several allegations of inappropriate behavior, no charges were filed against him and Mignogna denied allegations of criminal misconduct. Mignogna pursued defamation lawsuits after the accusations were made against him, and although he lost appeals and was ordered to pay legal fees, the civil rulings only determined whether the statements were defamatory. In October 2020, Achievement Hunter's Ryan Haywood and Funhaus co-founder Adam Kovic were both involved in scandals involving their leaked nudes; Kovic parted ways with the company. Days later, multiple allegations of grooming underage fans came out against Haywood, and he was subsequently fired. In June 2019, dozens of anonymous reviews from Glassdoor gained exposure, highlighting a negative crunch culture of long and unpaid hours, poor management, and over-reliance on temporary employees at Rooster Teeth Animation. Gray Haddock, Rooster Teeth's Head of Animation, stepped down two days after the allegations. In October 2022, Kdin Jenzen, a former Achievement Hunter employee, posted online about her experiences working at the company. She accused the company of still having a crunch culture, not paying her fairly, and homophobic and transphobic abuse by upper management, to the extent that her nickname at the company was a slur. Hours later, Achievement Hunter cast members, including Rooster Teeth co-founder Geoff Ramsey, responded to Jenzen's message apologizing for their prior behavior at the company, as well as announcing a reduced release schedule for the future. The following day, Rooster Teeth released a statement addressing the situation, claiming that they were taking steps to improve their work culture and reviewing pay parity at the company. Following Jenzen's message, numerous other former employees spoke up about their experiences working at Rooster Teeth, adding more accounts of unpaid work and discriminatory abuse while at the company. Rooster Teeth then released a second statement apologizing for harmful behaviors, listing changes made since 2020 including the introduction of pay bands and the replacement of the entire Human Resources department. On the 20th of November 2019, Michael Quinn, Rooster Teeth's Vice President of Product Research and Engineering, was arrested for assaulting his wife. Quinn was fired three days later. On the 6th of March 2024, general manager Jordan Levin notified employees that the company would close over the next several months. In an email, he cited reasons for the shutdown including fundamental shifts in consumer behavior and monetization across platforms, advertising, and patronage, with it being reported that the number of subscribers to Rooster Teeth's First service had dropped to around one-quarter of their peak and that Rooster Teeth as a whole had been unprofitable for a decade. While the Roost Podcast Network planned to remain in operation while Warner Bros. Discovery sought a buyer, Warner also gauged interest in Rooster Teeth's intellectual property, including RWBY, Red vs. Blue and Gen:Lock. In April 2024, The Roost Podcast Network would be sold to the talent management company Night, and in July 2024, the RWBY franchise would be sold to Viz Media. Some employees continued working in order to finalize the shutdown and, for a time, it remained unclear when the company will close entirely. Most employees left on the 10th of May 2024, with the website updated to a final goodbye message on the 15th of May 2024. Following the closure, several of the former talent and staff members from Rooster Teeth continued to work together in new ventures. On the 5th of February 2025, Burns announced he had acquired the Rooster Teeth brand and some of its remaining intellectual property through his company Box Canyon Productions. Some Rooster Teeth productions are set to return, alongside a reimagining of Burns' first film, The Schedule, and a new audio adventure, Again. On August 7, after a period of being in open beta, the website relaunched, as announced on Burns' podcast Morning Somewhere.