Later, Stefán Karl had been invited by Magnús Scheving, an Icelandic gymnast, to portray one of the characters in the second "LazyTown" play. Scheving created the plays because he was concerned that Iceland's younger generation is not doing enough exercise. Stefán Karl explained that "[Scheving] wanted the kids to get healthier, so he created this musical called "LazyTown". He played Sportacus, the fitness fanatic, and I was Robbie Rotten, the guy who liked to stay indoors and sleep". After initial success with the musical, Nickelodeon eventually made a deal with the creators of "LazyTown" to air the first 40 episodes of "LazyTown" along with a special studio built in Iceland. During the first few years of "LazyTown" in the early 2000s, Stefán Karl initially knew no English, but soon became fluent.