Reading Rainbow Returns With New Host Mychal Threets

If you’re of a certain age, then chances are, you’ve already got that theme song running through your head: “Butterfly in the sky/I can go twice as high…” Reading Rainbow was a staple of many a Gen X and Millennial childhood, with LeVar Burton highlighting the joys of reading, celebrating good books, and taking viewers on various adventures and field trips. (My favorite episode is the one that visits the set of Star Trek: The Next Generation, where Burton starred as Geordi La Forge.)

Reading Rainbow ran for over 20 years, from 1983 to 2006, followed by app launches and online experiences. And now, the show is back for a new generation of young readers. Burton won’t be hosting, however. Those duties instead fall to Mychal Threets, a real-life librarian who has amassed a social media following thanks to his playful and engaging posts celebrating libraries, literacy, and mental health. The rebooted Reading Rainbow will also feature special guests, including Rylee Arnold and Ezra Sosa (Dancing with the Stars) and Ebon Moss-Bachrach (The Fantastic Four: First Steps, The Bear) while Gabrielle Union, Adam Devine, John Legend, and Chrissy Teigen will narrate books.

New Reading Rainbow episodes will begin streaming on October 4, 2025 via Kidzuko, a kids-oriented YouTube channel managed by Sony Pictures Television.