Background[]
MTV Entertainment Studios is the film and television production arm of Music Television (MTV). Founded in 1991 as MTV Productions and in 1996 as MTV Films, it has produced television shows and films based on MTV programs such as Beavis and Butt-Head Do America and the Jackass movies, as well as other adaptations and original projects such as Napoleon Dynamite. Its films are distributed by fellow ViacomCBS division Paramount Pictures. In 2020, MTV Films was fully integrated into MTV Studios, which became MTV Entertainment Studios in 2021, encompassing content for and based on all of MTV's brands.
MTV Productions (first era)[]
1st Logo (June 2, 1991-January 1, 1995)[]
Nicknames: "The MTV Logo", "Liquid MTV"
Logo: On a swirling background with blue water droplets (from the intro of Liquid Television), we see the MTV logo in a red gradient with "TV" and "MUSIC TELEVISION" in white. The logo zooms in slowly and tilts to the right.
FX/SFX: The background animation, the animation of the MTV logo.
Music/Sounds: The ending theme of the show.
Availability: Extinct. Seen on Liquid Television.
2nd Logo (October 25, 1993-June 23, 1995)[]
Nicknames: "The MTV Logo II", "Folding MTV"
Logo: It's a shortened version of the MTV Home Video logo of the era, but "PRODUCTIONS" appears below instead of "HOME VIDEO".
FX/SFX: Same as the MTV Home Video logo of the era.
Music/Sounds: The ending theme of the show.
Availability: Extinct. Seen on The Jon Stewart Show.
MTV Films[]
1st Logo (1996)[]
Logo: On a black background, we see a small MTV logo on the left and the word "PRODUCTIONS" on the right.
FX/SFX: None.
Music/Sounds: The opening theme of the trailer.
Availability: Very rare. Was only seen on the teaser trailer for Beavis and Butt-Head Do America.
Editor's Note: None.
2nd Logo (July 26, 1996)[]
Nicknames: "The MTV Logo III", "The Static-Filled MTV"
Logo: On a black background, we see the MTV logo (with "MUSIC TELEVISION" underneath), with animated static inside the "M". When the static disappears, the "M" in the logo turns white.
FX/SFX: The animated static, and the "M" turning white.
Music/Sounds: The cockroaches singing the "Charge" fanfare and shouting "JOE!"
Availability: Only seen at the end of Joe's Apartment.
Editor's Note: None.
3rd Logo (December 20, 1996-August 27, 2004, October 18, 2019)[]
Nicknames: "The Astronaut", "The MTV Astronaut", "The MTV Moonman", "The MTV Moon Person"
Logo: We fade into space as we see an astronaut floating around from right to left. The astronaut suddenly comes close to the camera, and we see that the MTV logo is reflected backwards onto his helmet. We zoom into the reflection and out again to reveal the MTV logo (with "MUSIC TELEVISION" intact under it) with the word "PRODUCTIONS" below it.
Variants:
- On TV shows from the company, it just shows the MTV Productions logo zooming out.
- Orange County was the last film to use the "PRODUCTIONS" variant, but only on theatrical prints. Starting with Crossroads in 2002, the word "PRODUCTIONS" is replaced by "FILMS" in spaced-out letters.
- On home media prints of Orange County, the part where the astronaut comes close to the camera is removed.
- This logo was briefly revived for Eli; here, the logo reflected onto the astronaut's helmet is the post-2010 MTV logo next to the text "Films", all in white. The logo zooms out with a fisheye-esque effect.
FX/SFX: The astronaut floating in space, the MTV logo zooming in and out.
Music/Sounds: None or the movie's opening theme.
Music/Sounds Variant: On Jackass: The Movie, we hear breathing followed by a laugh provided by Johnny Knoxville.
Availability: Common. Can be seen on all MTV films and some TV shows from the era. It originally first appeared on Beavis and Butt-Head Do America and last appeared on Napoleon Dynamite. The 2019 variant was only seen on Eli, released in October 18, 2019.
Editor's Note: None.
4th Logo (January 12, 2002)[]
Nickname: "The Mosaic MTV"
Logo: On a black background with orange bars on each side of the screen, several dark green shapes (which resemble tiles) appear one-by-one, completely covering the black background. While this happens, white tile-like shapes form in the center and round outlines appear in a ripple effect. Six white rectangles emerge from the center and form a big "M". The word "FILMS" fades in underneath, while "TV" is drawn on the right-hand side of the "M".
FX/SFX: The logo and mosaic shapes forming.
Music/Sounds: The opening theme of the movie.
Availability: Extremely rare. Only seen on Better Luck Tomorrow.
Editor's Note: None.
5th Logo (January 14, 2005-October 23, 2009)[]
Nicknames: "The Astronaut II", "The MTV Astronaut II", "The MTV Moonman II", "The MTV Moon Person II", "The Astronaut Theater"
Logo: We see an overhead view of Earth, which turns out to be a reflection on the helmet of an astronaut. The astronaut is sitting in a movie theater along with many others, as popcorn flies around in zero-gravity. We then zoom out of a hole in the shape of the MTV logo (with "MUSIC TELEVISION" intact underneath) as "FILMS" in spaced-out letters zooms in underneath it.
Variants:
- On Coach Carter, the logo turns into a drawing (for a split-second) before turning back to normal.
- There is a prototype version of the logo where it has a slower zoom-out, the astronauts are in different positions and are all wearing white spacesuits. The word "FILMS" appears letter-by-letter.
FX/SFX: The reflection and the zooming back, paired together with nice CGI.
Music/Sounds: The opening theme of the movie.
Music/Sounds Variants:
- On Jackass Number Two, we can hear the astronauts laughing and chuckling (provided by Steve-O and Chris Pontius), then a metal slam.
- On the prototype version of the logo, it starts off with an engine huffing, followed by a note sounding similar to the THX Deep Note when we zoom out of the astronaut's helmet. As we zoom out, a calm piano tune plays, accompanied by sounds of beeping. When the company name forms, a rock guitar chord is heard.
Availability: No longer current, but still very common. Can be seen on movies starting with Coach Carter and ending with Dance Flick. The prototype variant was only used as a test logo, and was not seen on any movie.
Editor's Note: None.
6th Logo (2006)[]
Nickname: "The Blue MTV Logo"
Logo: We see the electronic components, surrounded by blue lights, which then zooms out to the MTV logo, placed inside the circle. The name "MTV FILMS EUROPE" appears below the circle.
FX/SFX: The MTV logo is composed from the parts.
Music/Sounds: None.
Availability: Only seen on Dirty Sanchez: The Movie.
Editor's Note: None.
7th Logo (December 26, 2007)[]
Nickname: "The MTV Logo IV"
Logo: On a white background, we see the MTV logo (with "MUSIC TELEVISION" intact underneath).
FX/SFX: None.
Music/Sounds: None.
Availability: Only seen on Jackass 2.5.
Editor's Note: None.
8th Logo (October 15, 2010-June 15, 2014, February 4, 2022)[]
Nicknames: "The Astronaut III", "The MTV Astronaut III", "The MTV Moonman III", "The MTV Moon Person III", "The MTV Flag"
Logo: We see an astronaut standing on the Moon's surface, near a flag with the MTV logo. The shot of the astronaut repeats three times from various directions, but it finally zooms into the flag, which constantly changes its texture and colors.
Trivia: This logo is based on the very first MTV bumper from 1981, only with much cleaner graphics (as well as the use of the post-2010 MTV logo with "FILMS" appearing underneath).
FX/SFX: The shot with the astronaut repeating, and the colors changing on the flag.
Music/Sounds: A slightly rearranged version of the track from the 1981 bumper. It was also extended alongside a variant of the 2002 Paramount Pictures logo.
Music/Sounds Variant: In some cases, such as Justin Bieber: Never Say Never and Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters, the opening theme of the movie plays over the logo.
Availability: The logo first appeared on Jackass 3D and is seen on movies by MTV Films up to Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa 5. It recently made a re-appearance on Jackass Forever.
Editor's Note: None.
9th Logo (July 31, 2013, January 30, 2015)[]
Nickname: "Eyes"
Logo: We see several flashing shots of multicultural and multicolored eyes. When we get to the last shot, we zoom in onto the iris and several flashing lights are seen before the MTV logo slides up on a box with the word "Films" in it. A live-action shot of a cheering audience, possibly taken from an EDM concert, is superimposed inside the logo, and we see more flashing shots of eyes, with the last eye closing.
Variant: On Project Almanac, the logo cuts off early.
FX/SFX: The flashing eyes and lights.
Music/Sounds: The opening theme of the movie.
Availability: First seen on the trailer for Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa (but the film itself uses the previous logo instead). The full version appeared only on Project Almanac. Don't expect to see this on Jackass Forever, as it uses the previous logo instead.
Editor's Note: None.
MTV Production Development[]
(2003-2019)[]
Nicknames: "The Crew", "Silhouettes"
Logo: We see a shot of some grass with the silhouettes of (presumably) a camera crew. Then the MTV logo appears, followed by the stenciled text "Production" and "Development" and a copyright stamp below it (all in white).
Variants:
- On Teen Wolf, the logo is shortened to a tenth of a second.
- Sometimes, the logo is still.
- There is a version that takes place on a beach, with waves crashing into the sand.
- Sometime around 2011, the logo was updated to have the current MTV logo.
FX/SFX: The text appearing and the shadows moving.
Music/Sounds: An ambient piano theme with the sound of a sprinkler and crickets chirping, or the ending theme of the show.
Music/Sounds Variants:
- On the beach version, there is the sound of seagulls and waves crashing.
- On The Substitute, the logo theme is sped-up and played in a different tone.
Availability: Extinct. Seen on MTV-produced shows, such as Teen Wolf and Jersey Shore.
Editor's Note: This logo is well-remembered by people who grew up watching Teen Wolf and Jersey Shore, as well as other MTV shows of the time.
MTV Music & Series Development[]
(2004-2005)[]
TBA.
MTV Series Entertainment[]
(2005-2010s)[]
Logo: Just the words "MTV SERIES ENTERTAINMENT" improvised in the credits.
FX/SFX: None.
Music/Sounds: The ending theme of the show.
Availability: Extinct. Seen on Pimp My Ride, Yo' Momma and Punk'd, among others.
MTV Productions (second era)[]
(201?-2018?)[]
TBA.
MTV Studios[]
1st Logo (2018-June 13, 2019)[]
Nicknames: "The Astronaut IV", "The MTV Astronaut IV", "The MTV Moonman IV", "The MTV Moon Person IV"
Logo: Same as the 3rd MTV Films logo, but the reflected part is replaced with the 2010 MTV logo. A rectangle is seen next to it with the word "S T U D I O S" inside of it.
FX/SFX: Same as the 3rd MTV Films logo.
Music/Sounds: A descending synth sound, followed by a remake version of the 1981 "One Small Step" theme.
Availability: Only seen on Viacom's Vimeo account.
2nd Logo (June 13, 2019-March 4, 2021)[]
Nicknames: "The Astronaut V", "The MTV Astronaut V", "The MTV Moonman V", "The MTV Moon Person V", "The MTV Flag II"
Logo:
- Opening: TBA.
- Closing: TBA.
Variant: TBA.
FX/SFX: TBA. Designed by Antibody.
Music/Sounds: A dreamy five-note jingle based on MTV's very first ident from 1981.
Availability: Seen on the Facebook Watch iteration of The Real World, including the Mexico and Bangkok versions. The full version was uploaded to Vimeo by Patrick Clair.
Editor's Note: It's a pretty nice nod to the astronaut ident, which was the first ever MTV ident to be played on the channel.
MTV Entertainment Studios[]
(March 4, 2021- )[]
Nicknames: "The Astronaut VI", "The MTV Astronaut VI", "The MTV Moonman VI", "The MTV Moon Person VI", "The MTV Flag III"
Logo: Same as the 2nd MTV Studios logo, but with a brand new look of the MTV logo, with the letters being slightly redrawn. The logo also remains colored throughout instead of fading to a white print version at the end. "STUDIOS" is also replaced with "Entertainment S T U D I O S". The ViacomCBS byline fades in below.
Variant: In the alternate short version, the whole logo is fading in.
FX/SFX: Same as the 2019 MTV Studios logo by Antibody.
Music/Sounds: A short version of Dire Straits' song "Money for Nothing" with a sound bite of the "I want my MTV" chorus, sung by Sting.
Availability: Currently seen on South Park, Awkwafina Is Nora from Queens, The Real World Homecoming: New York and The Challenge: All Stars, as well as season 7 of Younger. It also appears in the credits of recent episodes of The Daily Show. This doesn't appear on South Park: Post COVID: The Return of COVID, though it is on its predecessor, as well as Joining the Panderverse.
Editor's Note: Same as the 2nd MTV Studios logo.