Meet TANKMAN'S Creator... JohnnyUtah! (FNF, Newgrounds, OneyPlays, Nightmare Cops, & more)

JohnnyUtah! Famous for Tankman, FNF, Newgrounds, OneyPlays, & Game Dev of Nightmare Cops & Castle Crashers! Let's interview Jeff Bandelin, w/ collabs with Friday Night Funkin, Spazkid, PsychicPebbles, OneyNG, and podcasts such as the Sleepycabin Sleepycast!
As an indie game developer and designer, Jeff has helped Phantom Arcade (FNF's animator) & Tom Fulp (creator of Alien Hominid), among others with how they took over, shaped, and changed early internet culture!
🐤 Twitter (X)!: / metaterayt
🎲 Discord!: / discord
🦇 Join the MetaSquad! (Channel Member): / @metaterayt
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0:00 - Who is JohnnyUtah?
1:07 - How'd You Start at Newgrounds?
2:23 - Inspiration for TANKMEN
3:45 - Plans for MORE Tankman?
4:04 - Do You Still Enjoy Voicing Tankman?
4:29 - Origin of "UGH"
5:30 - How's Working with FNF's Team?
6:16 - Has FNF Changed Newgrounds Culture?
6:33 - 10 YEARS of NIGHTMARE COPS
7:35 - Jeff will Probably Die in a Wawa
8:07 - Tankman's New Catchphrase
Emojis provided by "Twemoji" on Twitter
Stock Footage provided by www.pexels(dot)com
Post Apocalyptic Poster by MovieWeb - movieweb(dot)com/post-apocalyptics-movies-2010s
Newgrounds Site Footage by DidYouKnowGaming - How Newgrounds Changed Gaming ft. JohnnyUtah: • How Newgrounds Changed...
Jeff is F-ing Fed Up Animation by stradomyre - • jeff is f*cking fed up
Newgrounds 2005 Office Renovation Seminar Footage by AlextheGreat78
Wawa B-Roll by jtshutes - / @jtshutes
Newgrounds Logo Evolution - 1000logos(dot)net/newgrounds-logo
Nightmare Cops Art - @JohnnyUtahNG and @NightmareCops on Twitter
Nightmare Cops Teaser Trailer by Nightmare Cops - • Nightmare Cops Teaser ...
Castle Crashers Art - @JohnnyUtah on Newgrounds
Tankmen Series Footage and Art by JohnnyUtahNG
#tankman #fridaynightfunkin #newgrounds

[@MetateraYT]

Favorite part of JohnnyUtah? 🤔 (Tankman, FNF, OneyPlays, Nightmare Cops, UGH, etc.) (Note: Our interview was recorded in Discord, with Adobe Premiere Pro's "enhance audio" and filters on both our mics in post-processing. Our mics may sound fairly different in certain parts due to Discord's compression. I tried my best to equalize it during the editing process!)

[@Angels_Cool]

his joyful attitude, I just freakin love seeing him enjoy himself

[@MrMGamerReal]

His TankMan stuff

[@MetateraYT]

@@Angels_Cool Yes, his laugh is infectious!

[@MetateraYT]

@@MrMGamerReal Very epic. 😎

[@Angels_Cool]

@@MetateraYToh my fricken gosh you’re such an awesome guy, I didn’t realize you replied to me 😭

[@psychoticpebble]

I love Jeff. My baby boy who has grown so much over the years.

[@MetateraYT]

Baby boy turned big burly boi 🥹

[@HeatusIsTheFetus]

i think he loves you too zach

[@thevanillafeziant]

@@HeatusIsTheFetusIt’s not Zach.

[@HeatusIsTheFetus]

@@thevanillafeziant damn

[@tahutoa]

​@@thevanillafeziantit's shademan

[@averagegoat277]

When you announced the JohnnyUTAH interview I was hanging out with my girlfriend and a few of my friends, and I was legit in shock when I saw that community post lol

[@MetateraYT]

Lol, I'm glad that post could instill such a powerful emotion! 😂

[@ManieTheman-bv7kv]

Your not real because fnf players dont have girlfriends

[@TheFnafdude1987real]

​@@ManieTheman-bv7kvHe says he was hanging out with Girlfriend, the character obviously🙄

[@hoelander12]

​@@TheFnafdude1987real People these days can't understand anything smh 🙄🙄🙄

[@zombielizard9383]

​​@@ManieTheman-bv7kvFnf fans when their gf gets fųck¡ņg murdered by a demon: "Omg just like in the mods!!!1!1!!"

[@numbuh1507]

If he's willing to release the script for Tankmen 3, we could animate it ourselves.

[@MetateraYT]

Hmm possibly! 🤔

[@coolcola5828]

yknow those big animation collabs? they could do one of those

[@zombielizard9383]

Just like with Madness Combat Well, the original Madness Combat is 100% made by Krinkles and his team, but unlike Madness Combat, I've never seen as many Tankmen fan animations and fan series I guess it's because it's much easier to drag a grey guy around than to fully articulate a bulky guy, idk

[@peonycreme]

Well, I asked JohnnyUtah if he was ever going to let someone animate Tankmen 2.5 and 3 for him at the beginning of this year. (I honestly would love to that, I am a Tankmen fan) And basically said “no” to me.

[@GiffanyCD]

I love how Jeff's voice sounds like he's in a sewer

[@MetateraYT]

That's the wonders of Discord audio 😂

[@CollyIsEpic]

It sounds like ai tbh

[@MetateraYT]

@@CollyIsEpic Please read the pinned comment. (The call was done in Discord)

[@thedabmaster287]

Maybe he is

[@MetateraYT]

@@thedabmaster287 Can confirm Jeff called me from his local sewer

[@drackflame951]

The "UGH" has lore.

[@MetateraYT]

It'll be on next week's history test

[@FrankUserEXE]

Crazy that Tank Man is on Spooky Month

[@MetateraYT]

It's very awesome. 😎

[@terrance6814]

Jeff loves clapping his feet together like a baby! He's also an incredible talent!

[@MetateraYT]

Ok! Uh, yes!

[@thevanillafeziant]

@@MetateraYTWatch the Oneyplays Jeff compilation and then you’ll probably understand 95% of the references that are made in the comments. The other 5% are SleepyCabin/SleepyCast.

[@MetateraYT]

@@thevanillafeziant OH, ok that makes sense! Thank you for the clarification 😂

[@BlustreakG]

What a goofy wholesome guy just having a laugh on simple things. I love Jeff

[@MetateraYT]

He does appreciate the small things, it was nice to hear :)

[@nekoplayz1501]

Dang, this interview was so much cooler than I expected! I love seeing these legendary figures that have been around since my childhood actually get to lay back and talk casually. Jeff's work, and Newgrounds as a whole, has had a pretty decent influence in my life, and I'm sure many others. Can't wait to see who you talk with next 👍

[@MetateraYT]

Thank you neko, I'm really glad you enjoyed it! It was an honor having Jeff on the channel. Glad people got to see a more casual and laid back side to him. :)

[@MrMGamerReal]

As TankMan would say UGH

[@MetateraYT]

UGH!

[@bogonelle]

eh eh ew a o e a eh eh o e o e ew o e ew e eh eh ew a o e a a ah o e ew *UGH!*

[@2calcur2_official]

I'm getting Nightmare Cops when it comes out now

[@MetateraYT]

Very awesome. 😎

[@Discontinuedchannelegus]

Imagine creating a character and sending that character to a website and it gets so much popular..

[@jesuis244]

Yeah just imagine some character gets let of popularity by just doing something

[@MetateraYT]

And 20 years later, here we are. :)

[@JustFrontier]

Ugh!! this was a great interview, well done Meta! And props to JohnnyUtah for the hilarious stories!

[@MetateraYT]

Ugh!! Thanks Frontier, I'm glad you enjoyed it! His stories are always great haha

[@dedooko]

johnnyutah sounds like a really familiar name I’ve heard from my entirenlife

[@MetateraYT]

It's apparently also from a movie character, however I've never watched it haha

[@Renamin]

These videos are bangers, idk why youtube doesnt push them more lol

[@MetateraYT]

Thank you, I'm glad you enjoy them! It may just take some time for the video to find the right audience. :)

[@Collato]

It was always a little depressing hearing that one SleepyCast episode about what they wanted to accomplish in 5 years where they were pretty ambitious but somewhat reasonable but still non of the stuff they wanted to do was anywhere near coming to fruition. However, look at things now and between Smiling Friends; and Nightmare Cops, Friday Night Funkin', and Bowlbo: The Quest for Bing Bing all coming together nicely in development. Things are really going how they said they hoped they would go. It's just nice knowing even though it took longer than they thought they're succeeding in the goals they laid out and being acknowledged for all their hard work.

[@MetateraYT]

Yes, for sure. It's great to hear they're moving towards their long-term goals, even if it's taking a little longer. I'm just curious, do you remember which SleepyCast that was from? It'd be interesting to listen in on it where we are today. :)

[@Collato]

​@@MetateraYT It was SleepyCast 11 - [Spooktacular Q&A Spectacular] around the 1:32:00 mark... I kinda remembered it wrong and overembellished it though, I thought it was a whole episode thing but it was just a 5-minute question. Nothing really "depressing" about it. Corey was the most real one saying nothing would really change, Jeff's was the funniest saying he would kill himself if he didn't finish the game by 2019. They both said they wanted to do an animated show after the game (hopefully they would still want to do that after all this time.) Chris wanted to direct, he didn't really have anything in mind but the sentiment was he didn't want to do short cartoons anymore which did come true I guess. And Zach hit the nail on the head with he just wanted to have at least one season of a show where he was just off by 3 years. But yeah, revisiting it it's actually pretty cool to see how much they succeeded... poor Jeff though, but Corey was right, I know a "5 year plan" is a normal thing but sometimes nothing changes in 5 years.

[@MetateraYT]

@@Collato Wow, thank you so much for the timestamp and insightful info! Despite most of their ideal goals, thankfully they're still all on a good track. :)

[@akiyama-gaming]

Another piece to put on my newgrounds lore board

[@MetateraYT]

Aw snap, heck yeah!

[@AbstraktNG]

I always viewed Jeff as this always pissed off guy that you shouldn’t talk to. This interview makes him very down to earth and chill

[@MetateraYT]

Yeah I could see that based off the pics of him on Google 😂 But yes, when his friends aren't trolling him he's really chill :)

[@AbstraktNG]

@@MetateraYT Yeah, I would be pissed if I had to deal with trolling from Chris, Cory, and Dave all the time for so many years

[@MetateraYT]

@@AbstraktNG True that! 🤣

[@horse3987]

sick vid man i always wondered how john was outside newgrounds and stuff, pretty refreshing

[@MetateraYT]

Thank you, I'm really glad you enjoyed it! And yeah, it's nice to get to know him outside of his normal appearances. :)

[@Acethecooldude]

Been waiting for nightmare cops for quite awhile now cant wait to play it

[@MetateraYT]

For sure. Digging through the Twitter account and Jeff's art was a magical experience. :)

[@TheSpinia]

6:33 The Editor really snuck that fire song in the background

[@MetateraYT]

Hehe :)

[@yepitsme3336]

"When I was a dip$hit in high school..." Best video I seen from you, Meta! You rock, UGH!

[@MetateraYT]

Lmao. 😂 I'm really glad you enjoyed it Yep, that means a lot - thank you!

[@MegaWolffire]

“Well past the half way point” so at least another short 8 years til we get nightmare cops, sweet! So excited 😆

[@MetateraYT]

Haha I'm optimistic and hoping it meant they're in the 70-80% range 😆

[@Dfortblox]

Jeff sounds like such an awesome guy (love the interview!)

[@MetateraYT]

Thank you, I'm really glad you enjoyed it! He is a really awesome guy to just talk about experiences with. :)

[@user-uf3rj9wz4h]

there was a reference to nightmare cops in week 5 of fnf

[@MetateraYT]

True, good eye!

[@AhhSlickerz]

Imagine Jeff creates a Tankman vs Darkman short

[@MetateraYT]

That'd be cool!

[@Jimmys759]

Seriously,someone needs to interview kawaisprite

[@MetateraYT]

Good suggestion! I've reached out in the past, but hadn't heard back. Perhaps I will try again soon, haha (last time was early 2024)

[@peonycreme]

It’s awesome you got to talk to JohnnyUtah, I am fan of Tankmen and I respect him! And I sure do hope he finishes Tankmen 2.5 and 3, even if he gets someone else to do it. (I would love to that) Also, I am making a Tankmen webseries (which JohnnyUtah okayed btw, he said “Don’t say I approved it, do whatever you want, I don’t care.”) and the pilot and episode one of the webseries will cover what could’ve been Tankmen 2.5 and 3, and it would be an honor if JohnnyUtah would watch it, if not then it’s okay. But I hope you guys will watch it when it releases next year.

[@MetateraYT]

That's awesome to hear, best of luck making the series! :)

[@peonycreme]

@@MetateraYT Thanks, once the pilot is out, maybe you can promote it on your channel, I want as much people as possible to watch my Tankmen webseries. (You don’t have to if you don’t want to but it would be awesome if you did!)

[@mariosonic77]

Jeff is definitely the type of guy to die in a WAWA.

[@MetateraYT]

He also wouldn't go down without an UGHly fight 😎

[@seansmith6255]

I liked jeff from the moment I heard him tormented on sleepycast

[@MetateraYT]

Our poor boi has a whole compilation based on being tortured by his friends 😂

[@kapifromnevada4697]

I can literally hear touhou music used as the background music late in the video Anyways great interview

[@MetateraYT]

Haha I'm really glad to hear you enjoyed it, thank you! :)

[@user-fv9kl9kl8l]

Hey metatera there is a song called lost in hell and it was charted by oligon and you should make a video about it. Its a dave and bambi song and its for impossible than funeral and has more notes.

[@MollyDollyy774]

6:52 Ohhhhh Nightmare Cops, this was referenced in week 6, at the Mall, the Nightmare Cops where front and centre for the Background, to the right of GF on her Stereo

[@MetateraYT]

Yeah! I can see them getting a bonus song or week depending on Nightmare Cops' launch with the full FNF game

[@MollyDollyy774]

@MetateraYT Yeah, it would be so cool !! Also it was awesome to see an Interview with Captains voice actor/Creator

[@MetateraYT]

@@MollyDollyy774 For sure! And thank you, I'm really glad you enjoyed it :)

[@SIG7Pro]

I wanna get interviewed by Metatera one day. Someday.

[@djfazbear100]

Awesome video! Or as how tankman would put it, "Heh, Pretty Good!". But seriously, I like this video a lot.

[@MetateraYT]

Thank you very much, I'm really glad you enjoyed it! It was an honor to have him on the channel, tbh I'm still shocked he got back so fast after I asked him, haha.

[@djfazbear100]

@@MetateraYT I see that.

[@Yoofii]

I love these interview videos

[@MetateraYT]

Thank you! I'm very glad you enjoy them. :)

[@NorthEmulator]

Love the video keep up the work

[@MetateraYT]

Thank you very much! I'm glad you enjoyed it. :)

[@captainblu3028]

Awesome interview with the one in only johnnyutah meta!👍✨️🧡

[@MetateraYT]

Thank you captainblu, I'm very glad you enjoyed it! It's still crazy to think Jeff's on the channel haha

[@captainblu3028]

@@MetateraYT yeah true lol and your welcome meta 🧡

[@pok_knolastname]

8:22 the laugh was so ontime

[@MetateraYT]

Yes! 😂

[@BFFNF69420]

METATERA! can you talk about the song Silly Billy from the fnf hit single mod? cause its SO GOOD!

[@0w0MarshiMell0]

Ugh but he is VA 0f r0ughly captain

[@el.blanco8961]

UGH i can't wait to watch this UUGGH!

[@MetateraYT]

UGH I hope you enjoyed it UGH!!

[@StikbotJP]

Tankman!

[@MetateraYT]

"Heh, pretty good!"

[@jaxtermations]

Haven’t hear Johnny in a long time. Fingers Cross he’s on Smiling Friends

[@MetateraYT]

I hope so too, especially after Jeff VA'd in Spooky Month!

[@duburcan-lf5cl]

Will there be an interview with Nayu, the creator of vs sonic exe rerun?

[@PlushySquare]

This has filled me with dread, was playing with new people in a game and someone named JohnnyUtah joined the game, they had spent well over a thousand Dollars in the game, and acted like the biggest prick Really hope they aren't the same person

[@mesworld1350]

I read the thumbnail as “fnf tank man only plays nightmare cops” 💀

[@MetateraYT]

That's really funny, and totally sounds in character for him 😂

[@SuperMario-vc4ew]

I don't know if you'll do more Guessing FNF Characters Videos but if you do.. i have an idea, For the correct guesses, use the winning icons for any mod character that's guessed correctly , for incorrect guesses, use the losing icons for any mod character that's guessed incorrectly and if it's close, use the neutral icons of the characters

[@MetateraYT]

Thank you for the suggestion!

[@SuperMario-vc4ew]

@@MetateraYT Your welcome!

[@Stradomyre]

UGH i freaking love Jeff UGH!!

[@MetateraYT]

UGH you're so right Stradomyre UGH!! (amazing animation btw) :)

[@ursapolargalactica]

I love tankman Voices in fnf ❤

[@MetateraYT]

Yes, solid favorite choice!

[@Knojj_stickman349]

Tankman is the mascot in newgrounds XD

[@baltoendocrine9783]

Lmao! I love the lip syncing at the end!!!

[@MetateraYT]

Lol thank you!! It took much longer than I thought 😭

[@Kelswagsinandballin]

Omg he said the thing... *UGH!*

[@MetateraYT]

So many beautiful *UGHS* in such little time 😭

[@Redistick_rediredis]

Can you pls talk with Mr.T the song creator one doing fnf ask leaks pls

[@therealestcupheadonyt]

every fnf mod should add a “jeff” difficulty where its incredibly easy to play

[@JackLeaks]

2 hours for a 8 minute video??? what the funk???

[@MetateraYT]

There was a lot of lore haha, but honestly some parts would be very hard to edit or find footage. Perhaps I can upload an extended version in the future of the full thing if he'd be ok with that.

[@Kitspidey]

8:25 Lmao

[@MetateraYT]

Pure joy 😂

[@kingrgames]

Metatera, how do you record the calls?

[@MetateraYT]

Through Discord! Sometimes, the interviewee and I exchange OBS recordings if possible (like with the UniqueGeese interview). I'd like to record on a better platform for audio in the future, though, since Discord's compression can make editing audio challenging.

[@peonycreme]

I didn’t know JohnnyUtah had Discord!

[@bogonelle]

I love me some good ol Tankman

[@MetateraYT]

Absolutely 😎

[@peonycreme]

Same!!

[@Saruky]

hey ur back, thats cool

[@MetateraYT]

Hey Saruky! :)

[@Saruky]

@@MetateraYT helo!!!!!

[@MetateraYT]

@@Saruky Hello!! How've you been? Edit: Congratulations on working with the FNF team!! That's such an amazing accomplishment. 😁

[@Saruky]

@@MetateraYT stressed cuz i have a lot of work 😭😭😭 but overall good ty for askin

[@MetateraYT]

​@@Saruky Yeah, no problem! I'm wishing you the best with your work, haha. :) By the way, would you be interested in hopping on for an interview in the future? 🤔

[@poorlyrenderedrolf8882]

GOd DAMN CLASH OF CLANS WAS FUCKING SLAPPIINNNNNNNNNNNNN. Bless him for that one those portraits are ionic

[@MetateraYT]

Yeah I still see people use castle crashers pfps from time to time :)

[@fin--]

Fire video

[@MetateraYT]

Thank you very much, I'm glad you enjoyed it!

[@zafran715]

Still waiting for the 100 VIDEOS

[@MetateraYT]

It'll be out this month!

[@Tyro1301]

i made a cartoon about that guy

[@MetateraYT]

That's awesome!

[@Temshuski]

Metatera, thanks

[@MetateraYT]

Yeah, you got it!

[@therealrayshady]

Jeff is my idol

[@MetateraYT]

Wholesome 🥹

[@nathanE578]

When are we getting the Sr Pelo interview

[@MetateraYT]

Ooh, thank you for the suggestion!

[@AliciaInNevada]

Sanford

[@3min3m2001]

save those jellyfish

[@MetateraYT]

Lol 😂

[@VM15145]

Why does Jeff's voice sound so strange? Is it really created by AI?

[@jeffendaya5853]

0:27 - $hit!!! What?

[@MetateraYT]

Childhood RUINED!!

[@slidersides]

Garn47 interview when?

[@MetateraYT]

I'm not sure what that is haha, but from a quick search I'll have to check it out!

[@slidersides]

@@MetateraYT hit single mod

[@furygrtx840]

Rename yourself to Metaterabyte next April 1st

[@MetateraYT]

You're a real OG lol 😂

[@TheKambiLOL]

Can u react to Dave And Bambi: Strident Crisis (1.5 Version)

[@MetateraYT]

Thank you for the suggestion 👍

[@PaytonWilfong]

Why did he stop making Tankman?

[@MetateraYT]

He essentially felt artistically stifled from the animations, and wasn't getting better as an artist. He also said perhaps he felt burnt out, and wanted to move onto other projects. As he said, maybe one day he'll return to make Tankmen 2.5/3. :)

[@PaytonWilfong]

@@MetateraYT aw shucks

[@Pretentigon]

jeff

[@MetateraYT]

rey

[@GranolaBar_gen]

I love tankman 🫶😭

[@MetateraYT]

Dang straight!

[@peonycreme]

Same!!

[@Pika25-fw7fq]

Do silly billy

[@MetateraYT]

Thank you for the suggestion 👍

[@TergioCrucis]

Keep cooking bruh I'm so close

[@MetateraYT]

🤨

[@JoeTheMinorSilencer]

woah

[@thegamerManlyfocalizer8352]

Lol

[@MetateraYT]

😁

[@ThatGuyIsHereLol]

Why my lil boi sound like that?

[@MetateraYT]

Please refer to the pinned comment, haha. The call was recorded through Discord with filters in post-production

[@K8D00]

lol

[@MetateraYT]

😁

[@ivysauceee]

why are you both dubbed with ai

[@MetateraYT]

Huh? Haha

[@racu.]

probably adobe enhancer

[@ivysauceee]

adobe is cooked

[@MetateraYT]

@@racu. Correct! We both have "enhance audio" on since the call was on Discord. While it sounds better overall, it made editing certain parts a royal pain lol

[@slidersides]

Eugh

[@MetateraYT]

UGH

[@Sr.Noob.]

Hell yeah baby! The person that got me into newgrounds! 🤌

[@MetateraYT]

That's our Jeff. 🥹