https://www.polygon.com/platform/amp/2017/8/14/16143882/netflix-disney-shonda-rhimes-scandal-sense8
Netflix just stole television’s biggest creator from Disney in midst of separation
This is a much needed move for Netflix
Netflix needed a win. Even with the absurd amount of original series Netflix offers, Netflix needed something eye-catching. Partnering with Rhimes, one of the few television creators who is almost guaranteed to create popular, talked-about series every single time, is that win.
It’s not just that Netflix partnered with a top-tier creator, but the company has stolen Rhimes away from ABC; a network owned by Disney. Netflix can distract its subscribers by promising more television series — which will include A-list actors — even while popular movies are removed from the service.
Netflix’s decision to buy into Rhimes’ vision — along with the talents of other creators like Chuck Lorre and Jerry Seinfeld — also says something else about the company’s future: it will continue to be TV first. Netflix has received flack from its users in the past few months for its decision to cancel some of its original series, including the beloved, but trés expensive Sense8. At CodeCon, Netflix CEO Reed Hastings admitted the company needed to take more riskswith its original series and cut its losses instead of trying to hold onto everything. Not even a company as viable as Netflix could continue to add content without worrying about its financial future.
It’s a sentiment that Sarandos echoed just a few weeks later.
“Relative to what you spent, are people watching it? That is pretty traditional,” Sarandos said, as reported by Variety. “When I say that, a big expensive show for a huge audience is great. A big, expensive show for a tiny audience is hard even in our model to make that work very long.”
This is where Netflix’s new deal with Rhimes gets even bigger. Compared to other dramas, Rhimes’ shows don’t cost as much to make. Rhimes creates series about the drama of human relationships and those tend to cost less than a CGI-intensive, special effects heavy sci-fi series. For example, Orange is the New Black and House of Cards reportedly cost $4-4.5 million an episode whereas Sense8 and Game of Thrones reportedly cost $8-9 million an episode. Rhimes has said in the past that her own shows take anywhere from $3-6 million to make, depending on what’s needed. While that’s a little more in some cases than Orange is the New Black and House of Cards, it’s still far less than Sense8.
Rhimes can continue to create the series she wants, without having to worry about the logistical restraints that come with being on a network and pushing the envelope even further. Netflix can boast having Rhimes on its schedule and make itself look even better to an audience it may not have broached beforehand. Both can work together on the shows they want to create without having to worry about crossing a line or spending a fortune to make it happen.
Netflix partnering with Rhimes was more than a good idea; it was a display of survival. While Netflix is in talks with Disney to retain some of the studio’s films, including Marvel and Lucasfilm titles, snatching one of ABC’s biggest talents is a win all on its own.
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Netflix just stole television’s biggest creator from Disney in midst of separation
This is a much needed move for Netflix
- By Julia Alexander
- on August 14, 2017 2:35 pm
Netflix needed a win. Even with the absurd amount of original series Netflix offers, Netflix needed something eye-catching. Partnering with Rhimes, one of the few television creators who is almost guaranteed to create popular, talked-about series every single time, is that win.
It’s not just that Netflix partnered with a top-tier creator, but the company has stolen Rhimes away from ABC; a network owned by Disney. Netflix can distract its subscribers by promising more television series — which will include A-list actors — even while popular movies are removed from the service.
Netflix’s decision to buy into Rhimes’ vision — along with the talents of other creators like Chuck Lorre and Jerry Seinfeld — also says something else about the company’s future: it will continue to be TV first. Netflix has received flack from its users in the past few months for its decision to cancel some of its original series, including the beloved, but trés expensive Sense8. At CodeCon, Netflix CEO Reed Hastings admitted the company needed to take more riskswith its original series and cut its losses instead of trying to hold onto everything. Not even a company as viable as Netflix could continue to add content without worrying about its financial future.
It’s a sentiment that Sarandos echoed just a few weeks later.
“Relative to what you spent, are people watching it? That is pretty traditional,” Sarandos said, as reported by Variety. “When I say that, a big expensive show for a huge audience is great. A big, expensive show for a tiny audience is hard even in our model to make that work very long.”
This is where Netflix’s new deal with Rhimes gets even bigger. Compared to other dramas, Rhimes’ shows don’t cost as much to make. Rhimes creates series about the drama of human relationships and those tend to cost less than a CGI-intensive, special effects heavy sci-fi series. For example, Orange is the New Black and House of Cards reportedly cost $4-4.5 million an episode whereas Sense8 and Game of Thrones reportedly cost $8-9 million an episode. Rhimes has said in the past that her own shows take anywhere from $3-6 million to make, depending on what’s needed. While that’s a little more in some cases than Orange is the New Black and House of Cards, it’s still far less than Sense8.
Rhimes can continue to create the series she wants, without having to worry about the logistical restraints that come with being on a network and pushing the envelope even further. Netflix can boast having Rhimes on its schedule and make itself look even better to an audience it may not have broached beforehand. Both can work together on the shows they want to create without having to worry about crossing a line or spending a fortune to make it happen.
Netflix partnering with Rhimes was more than a good idea; it was a display of survival. While Netflix is in talks with Disney to retain some of the studio’s films, including Marvel and Lucasfilm titles, snatching one of ABC’s biggest talents is a win all on its own.
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