According to Craig Bartlett, he included the Pigeon Man in this film to debunk the fan theory that he committed suicide.
This film was originally intended to be made several years earlier as a followup to both the first film and the episode "The Journal (2002)". However, after the first film did not perform well at the box office, as well as the cancellation of the original series, the film was pretty much abandoned. Thanks to several fan petitions, the film was put back on track.
Most of the voice actors from the series reprise their roles, with the exception of a majority of the kids other than Helga, Rhonda, Phoebe, Harold, and Big Patty; as well as characters whose original voice actors have since passed on or retired such as Oskar Kokoshka, Pigeon Man and Mr. Hyunh.
Toran Caudell and Jamil Walker Smith, the original voices of Arnold and Gerald, respectively, appears in this film as new characters.
Craig Bartlett has said that a sequel or even a revival of the show could be possible depending on how successful the film is.