Adam Malamut smiles for the camera, while his brother Craig works

If you’ve ever found yourself passionately debating the Eagles’ latest blunder on talk radio, arguing over the best cheesesteak or sweating it out in line for “wooder ice” on a sweltering day, you’re already living in a world of “Universal Basic Guys.” Created by Cherry Hill’s Adam and Craig Malamut, this animated series on FOX brings local quirks – our obsession with sports, South Jersey’s small-town charm and, of course, Wawa runs – to a national audience. But at its heart, it’s for us. 

“It’s by South Jerseyans for South Jersey,” Adam says. “And if the rest of the world likes it – fine.”

Set in the near future, where AI has replaced most jobs, “Universal Basic Guys” follows brothers Mark and Hank Hoagies, regular South Jersey guys living on Universal Basic Income (UBI). This paycheck comes whether they’re working or not. Mark’s newfound cash fuels wild confidence as he drags Hank into his schemes, from flying planes to running a water ice stand. Meanwhile, his wife Tammy keeps things grounded, balancing her hospital job with Mark’s antics.

The show, which debuted last month and airs Sundays on FOX, is packed with local touches, from water towers to characters who sound like the armchair quarterbacks of Philly sports radio. The Malamut brothers, who handle much of the writing, directing and voice acting, pull heavily from their South Jersey roots. From Bonzio’s diner, TJ Wooderhan’s to the Wawa-inspired “WoWo,” the show brims with local references.

“The character of Mark is based on years of listening to Philly sports radio, where everybody thinks they know more than the coach,” Adam says. “Now he’s got the chance to prove it – and it’s not going well.”

“Hank is based on Craig and our relationship when we were younger – he looked up to me and thought I could do no wrong,” Adam adds. “But now we’re both adults, and he realizes his older brother could be an idiot.”

In one episode, Mark takes up bow hunting after listening to a Joe Rogan-type podcast. “He buys a bow, gets really into the idea of ethical hunting, and Hank becomes his arrow collector,” Craig says. “It’s a disaster.” In another episode, Mark tries his hand at being a Don Draper-style ad man. “He learns the hard way that’s not how things work anymore,” Adam adds. “And here’s a spoiler – he may or may not face off with the Jersey Devil.”

Adding to the humor is actor Fred Armisen, who voices a New Yorker in the show – a fitting role because, as talented as he is, his Philly accent wasn’t quite there, says Adam. “It’s funny because when he reads Mark’s lines, it sounds like a weird hybrid of Chicago or something,” he says. “In fairness, no one outside the area can really pull it off.”

For that reason, the Malamuts handle most of the voice work themselves. “I voice Mark and Hank, and Craig plays a ton of others – including the chimp from the first episode.”

Philly-based actress Talia Genevieve, known for her Aunt Terri Instagram character, voices Tammy. “We saw Aunt Terri years ago and said, ‘If we ever get a show, she has to play Tammy,’” Adam says. “She auditioned alongside big-name actresses, but she stood out. This is her first big role, and she makes Tammy feel like someone you’d actually meet around here.”

The Malamut brothers didn’t set out to be animators, but their love for drawing started early. During their high school days at Cherry Hill East, both contributed comics to the school newspaper, with varying results.

“I was actually kicked off the newspaper and suspended because I drew inappropriate pictures of my teacher,” says Adam, a 2001 East grad. “That’s when I realized I like making somewhat subversive cartoons and maybe this could be a career.”

Craig, 6 years younger, had a more conventional experience as comics and art editor. “It was a big part of my high school experience,” he recalls. “It gave me confidence that maybe I’m not that bad at drawing cartoons.”

Adam started his career in TV, working on shows like “Jimmy Kimmel Live!,” but animation called him. In the early 2010s, he taught himself to animate through online tutorials. His breakthrough came with a short cartoon featuring Phillies stars Chase Utley and Ryan Howard. The video went viral and evolved into “Sports Friends,” a web series for Yahoo that poked fun at athletes having unguarded, everyday conversations.

“That’s when I pulled Craig in,” Adam says. At the time, his younger brother was deep into his master’s degree in astrophysics, but soon Craig swapped studying the stars for drawing them. He started with background artwork for the series and quickly got sucked into the animation world.

The idea for “Universal Basic Guys” had been simmering, but the pandemic accelerated it. With presidential candidate Andrew Yang pushing universal basic income and AI taking over more jobs, the Malamuts started thinking about how a guy like Mark Hoagies would fit into that world.

“In a world where guys like Mark, who define themselves by their work, are put out of work, how do they find meaning?” Craig says. “It became a thought experiment about a guy who thinks he can do anything but is learning what he really can and can’t do.”

At the time, the brothers were between jobs, while their wives kept working. “Our wives had ‘real jobs,’ and we were making cartoons,” Craig laughs. “They’d come home exhausted, and we’d say, ‘Yeah, we’re doing really important stuff!’ That became a joke in the show – Mark thinking he’s doing something important while his wife, a nurse, is actually saving lives.”

With the 13-episode season now airing and a second season already confirmed, the show continues to bring South Jersey’s quirks to the world.

“It all comes from a place of love,” adds Adam.