Danny DeVito plays Satan in ‘Little Demon’ but he’s not what you think

It’s just a jumping off point, says daughter Lucy DeVito. “Kids and their parents can both be demons to each other, so it goes both ways. In my household growing up, there was a lot of love and fun. We based this on the positive relationship we have had and used that as a launching-off point for the kind of dark, twisted things you think about your parents or that your parents think about you growing up.”

The animated series – which pushes plenty of boundaries – focuses on Satan (voiced by Danny DeVito), his Antichrist daughter, Chrissy (voiced by Lucy DeVito, who is also an executive producer), and her mother (voiced by Aubrey Plaza), who try to maneuver teen relationships in light of the situation.

To add to the effect, “Little Demon” leans into the horror genre. Animation makes both elements easier to handle. “It was really liberating,” Danny DeVito says. “We’ve all done voices but to put it all together in each stage with the demons — that was a really incredible experience. It allows me to play all of the devilish things that I’ve always done in my career. It also gives me a family to care about.”

While “Little Demon” is probably not suitable for younger viewers (there’s nudity, profanity and very adult situations in the uncensored version), it does show how well animation and horror mesh.

“In horror, you’re always looking for some sort of release and, then, the same thing with comedy,” says co-creator Seth Kirschner. “They work really, really well off each other.” Genre films – like “Taken” and “Basic Instinct” – also figure into the concept.

Like the DeVito household, nothing is off limits.

“Our parents raised us watching great movies and going to great concerts,” says Jake DeVito, an executive producer. “There was always a great group of creative people who were coming through the house all the time.”

Danny DeVito’s impressive acting credentials were augmented by producing and directing stints.

“Even when ‘It’s Always Sunny’ started, these guys were hanging out in our backyard when I was in middle school,” Jake DeVito says.

Mom (who’s Emmy winner Rhea Perlman) and dad believed, “if you’re going to try something, do it at the house with a lot of people around,” Lucy DeVito says. “As long as everyone is safe, be a kid and explore.”

Danny DeVito remembers when his pre-teen kids were suggesting movies he should see. “They were raised on a lot of freedom in movies and understood that movies were make-believe.”

The DeVitos were big on pranks, too, Danny remembers when he and Jake brought a kitten home on Christmas Day, wrapped it in a big box and presented it to the others. “When that cat poked its head out of the box, it was like pandemonium in the house.”

The cat’s name? Christmas, of course.

Unlike Satan in “Little Demon,” Danny DeVito never exploded around his children. “I think he’d sulk,” Lucy DeVito says. “Dad didn’t really get mad.”

Adds Jake: “We’ve always stayed really close. We’ve had a very tight, warm relationship.”

While Satan’s family takes center stage, there are creatures who populate the world. The series, says co-creator Kieran Valla, takes place in a “Port Authority for all unearthly realms. That’s where Satan is now. He’s not in hell; he’s in the metaphysical realm.” Those creatures were inspired by comic books, novels and fantasy series.

Chrissy’s mother, meanwhile, is a lot like “Terminator’s” Sarah Connor, co-creator Darcy Fowler says. “I don’t think we’ve ever seen a woman quite do what she does…in the metaphysical realm.”

All of those R-rated scenes will likely be pixilated or bleeped, just to make sure it can air. Meanwhile, the producers will continue to create them and, as Kirschner says, “go for it. Obviously, we’re going to limit certain things so it doesn’t become tiresome. Unless FX lets us know, we’re just going to keep on.”

“Little Demon” premieres on Aug. 25 on FXX and stream the next day on Hulu.