Too Much TV: Your TV Talking Points For Friday, September 25th, 2020

Here's everything you need to know about the world of television for Friday, September 25th, 2020. I'm writing this from the Twin Cities suburbs, where AllYourScreens HQ is powered by iced tea in a can and cheese enchiladas.

WELCOME NEW SUBSCRIBERS
I've gotten a lot of new subscribers over the past couple of days, so I wanted to say thanks to all of you. I also wanted to give you the heads up that the Friday newsletter is typically a bit shorter unless there is some breaking news. That is primarily due to the fact that is also the day that has the largest number of new shows I need to highlight.

THE LIMITS OF NETFLIX STARDOM
TV critic Miles McNutt has a great piece laying out some of the factors that limit Netflix's ability to create a Disney Channel-type teen star. He talks a lot about the new Netflix series "Julie And The Phantoms," which is maybe the best Disney Channel teen series of the past five years. Even if Disney didn't make it:

Disney’s embrace of this model accompanied the horizontal integration of their operations, as Disney Channel stars were leveraged as “talent” to be deployed across Disney’s theme parks, record labels, TV channels, and more. Take, for example, Milo Manheim, who starred in the Disney Channel original musical Z-O-M-B-I-E-S in 2018: before it debuted, he and co-star Meg Donnelly appeared on a Disney Channel Christmas special filmed at Walt Disney World, and later that year Manheim competed on Dancing with the Stars, which airs on the Disney-owned ABC. And after the release of Z-O-M-B-I-E-S 2 in early 2020, he moved onto recording, releasing the single “We Own The Summer” on Walt Disney Records with an at-home, Disney Channel cameo-filled video produced during the COVID-19 pandemic; this was in addition to recording an at-home sing-along duet with Donnelly for the Disney Music channel. A Disney Channel star is by nature a force of synergy across the larger Disney ecosystem.

While McNutt doesn't mention it, I wonder if the way Netflix purchases shows also has an impact on its ability to create stars and keep up-and-coming actors inside its ecosystem. Since Netflix is paying a premium to buy out the people who would normally be profit participants in a new show. And I can't help suspecting that becomes an issue when you're a suddenly hot actor who wants to financially capitalize on their fame. 

U.S SVOD SUBS TO HIT 317 MILLION BY 2025
According to a new report by Digital TV Research, the number of SVOD subscribers in the U.S. is set to rise from 203 million last year to 317 million in 2025. While the firm estimates Netflix will add 10 million new domestic subscribers over the next four years, that growth will be dwarfed by many of its rivals. Disney+ will add 27 million new domestic subscribers, Hulu will add 22 million and Peacock, HBO and CBS All Access/Paramount+ will add more domestic subscribers than Netflix.

Here is a rundown of the new television programs premiering today:

1) A Perfect Crime Series Premiere (Netflix)
In April 1991, Detlev Rohwedder, the head of Treuhand, the East German Privatization and Restructuring Agency, was assassinated in Dusseldorf. An inspection of the scene revealed three cartridge cases, a plastic chair, a towel and a letter claiming responsibility by the Red Army Faction (RAF), a radical left terrorist group that killed 33 people between 1971 and 1993. To this day, the assassin has never been identified.

2) A Wilderness Of Error (FX)
When Army surgeon Jeffrey MacDonald is sent to prison for killing his family, a storm of swirling narratives challenges our very ability to find the truth all the while overshadowing a chilling possibility: MacDonald may be an innocent man.

3) Magic Of Disney's Animal Kingdom Series Premiere (Disney+)
Josh Gad gives viewers a backstage pass to explore the magic of nature within Disney’s Animal Kingdom Theme Park, Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge and The Seas with Nemo & Friends at EPCOT. Each of the eight episodes dives into the details, unveiling the multifaceted aspects of animal care, conservation and Disney Imagineering and showcases the parks’ magnificent array of more than 300 species and 5,000-plus animals and the herculean tasks their animal care experts undertake to keep things running day and night.

4) Fandango At The Wall (HBO Latino)
This music documentary follows multi-Grammy Award-winning musician Arturo O'Farrill and multi-Grammy Award-winning producer Kabir Sehgal who journey to Veracruz, Mexico to recruit master musicians for a live album recording at the U.S.-Mexico border wall.

5) Magic Of Disney's Animal Kingdom Series Premiere (Disney+)
Josh Gad gives viewers a backstage pass to explore the magic of nature within Disney’s Animal Kingdom Theme Park, Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge and The Seas with Nemo & Friends at EPCOT. Each of the eight episodes dives into the details, unveiling the multifaceted aspects of animal care, conservation and Disney Imagineering and showcases the parks’ magnificent array of more than 300 species and 5,000-plus animals and the herculean tasks their animal care experts undertake to keep things running day and night.

6) Public Trust (YouTube)
Through the work of Montana investigative journalist Hal Herring, Public Trust focuses on three land-based conflicts—the slashing of the Bears Ears National Monument in Utah; the potential permanent destruction of the Boundary Waters Wilderness in Minnesota; and the de facto sale of one of the last wild places in America, the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. The film makes a clear case for protecting our public lands and how the extractive industries, driven by only greed and profit, are trying to rob us and future generations of our shared American experience and heritage.

7) Secret Society Of Second Born Royals (Disney+)
Second in line for the throne. First in line to save the world.

8) Sneakerheads Series Premiere (Netflix)
Devin (Allen Maldonado), a former sneakerhead turned stay-at-home dad, gets back in the game only to quickly find himself five G’s in the hole after falling for one of old friend Bobby’s (Andrew Bachelor) get-rich-quick schemes. Desperate to get his money back before his wife finds out he’s fallen off the wagon, Devin enlists the help of a ragtag group of fellow shoe lovers on his global hunt for the elusive "Zeroes," the holy grail of hard-to-find kicks.

9) Tehran Series Premiere (Apple TV+)
This new series tells the utterly thrilling story of a Mossad agent who goes deep undercover on a dangerous mission in Tehran that places her and everyone around her in dire jeopardy. The series stars young Israeli actress Niv Sultan

10) The School Nurse Files Series Premiere (Netflix)
Eun-young might seem like an ordinary school nurse, but behind her mundane appearance is her supernatural ability to see monsters (ectoplasm) as jelly figures. When she's appointed to a new high school, she quickly discovers mysterious secrets that threaten the students and fights alongside her fellow teacher In-pyo, the handsome heir to the school.

TOO MUCH TV REALLY IS A THING
This newsletter is called "Too Much TV" because....well, it's hard to keep track of all the new television premiering everyday. To help you prioritize your viewing, click here to see our list of more than 400 upcoming television premieres, movies and finales. You'll find listings from more than 70 networks, as well as streaming services and web shows.

I'll be back with another one tomorrow. If you have any feedback, send it along to Rick@AllYourScreens.com and follow me on Twitter @aysrick.