Too Much TV: Your TV Talking Points For Wednesday, January 10th, 2024
I can't decide if this is a dumb idea or am I just old?
Here's everything you need to know about the world of television for Wednesday, January 10th, 2024.
I CAN'T DECIDE IF THIS IS A DUMB IDEA OR AM I JUST OLD?
The Sopranos is celebrating its 25th anniversary in 2024, and Warner Bros. Discovery is rolling out all sorts of special events, ranging from posting some full episodes on YouTube to launching pop-up versions of Satriale’s where fans can order Sopranos-inspired sandwiches.
But WBD (parent company of HBO) has also launched a TikTok account, where it is sharing 25-second recaps of every Sopranos episode.
And while I'm for thinking outside the box when it comes to marketing, after watching a few of the TikTok recaps, I'm left flummoxed by the effort. The clips are basically just like Mad Libs-style highlights of some catchy phrases and I'd be curious to see if they can convince anyone who hadn't seen the show to watch it for the first time.
THE FALL OF WILL AND JADA PINKETT SMITH'S MEDIA EMPIRE
Semafor has a look at the collapse of Westbrook, the media company launched by Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith. Unlike many celebrity-fronted production companies, Westbrook was a legitimate success. Until:
In fact, the Smiths sat in the front row at the Dolby Theater on March 27, 2022, as the proprietors of a promising new business: Westbrook was on track to generate some $170 million in revenue from various entertainment production deals, including with the show Bel-Air, the movie King Richard, and a variety of series for Disney+, Apple TV, Snapchat, Netflix and Hulu. It had employed about 100 people, mostly in its Calabasas offices, and had begun building up its international business with the acquisition of the German media company Telepool.
Then, on Oscars Night, Smith famously stormed onstage in front of millions of viewers and slapped comedian Chris Rock over a joke about Pinkett Smith. What happened next, according to three people directly familiar with the company and others who worked with Westbrook, represents the worst-case scenario for a new Hollywood business model, in which big stars seek to transform themselves from talent into businesses.
Aside from the fallout from the infamous slap, the piece also highlighted the bewildering string of executive overspending and self-dealing as the company struggled to recover from the combination of bad PR and an industry-wide strike-related slump.
One thing the piece doesn't do is highlight the other, more ephemeral issue facing Westbrook. In the aftermath of the slap, there were a series of interviews and a book that publicly laid out a very strained and unconventional relationship between Will and Jada Pinkett. Which is problem, given the fact the company was built on the public image of this supposedly happy couple.
IS THIS THE WAY TO IMPROVE RATINGS FOR THE OSCARS?
The Entertainment Strategy Guy posted a series of suggestions today about changes he would make in order to boost ratings for the Academy Awards. And while suggesting the Academy nominate more popular movies sounds a bit like streaming executives who suggest the way to make money is to make better content, there are a couple of really good suggestions I wanted to pass along:
First, Dual-Cast the Ceremony on ABC, Hulu AND Disney+
Why isn’t the Oscars ceremony on Disney+, Hulu or both yet? One third of all living room TV viewers are on streaming now:
If the Oscars only airs on ABC, one third of TV viewers just can’t watch it. (Including my researcher, an Oscar awards super fan.) If you want to “save” the Oscars and find possibly five to ten million more viewers for the show, this is where they are. On streaming.
My working hypothesis is that the contract language only allows a linear broadcast, and the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences probably wants an extra paycheck from Disney to put it on streaming, and right now it’s not worth it to Disney to pay that extra amount.
But that shouldn't matter to either party. Put the Oscars on ABC, Hulu and Disney+!
(To be clear, if the situation were reversed and the Oscars were only on Disney+/Hulu/streaming, I think that would lower the ratings just as much, if not more. Again, dual-cast people.)
I also like the idea of doing a primetime announcement show, although if you're going to stream the awards show, doing a streaming-only announcements show might be more effective.
Regardless, you should read the entire piece.
TWEET OF THE DAY
ODDS AND SODS
* Season three of Resident Alien premieres Wednesday, February 14th on Syfy.
* According to this report, John Malone is the second-largest landowner in the U.S., with 2,200,000 million acres under his control. Ted Turner is third, with 2,000,000 total acres. Taylor Sheridan is #44 on the list, with 266,255 total acres. And unlike Malone and Turner, who are both using the majority of acreage for nature research, Sheridan's holdings are primarily the ranch where he also shoots some of his TV programs.
* It's not TV-related, but this TikTok account of the great NeoPets Advent Calendar scandal is just bonkers.
* Max has canceled Julia after two seasons. I obviously don't have any specific viewer numbers, but from the outside, season two of the show just seemed to have gotten lost.
* vMVPD Fubo signed a new carriage deal with Nexstar last week and it was rumored to be an expensive agreement for Fubo. And that may well be true, given the streamer announced today that it was raising the prices on some of its programming packages. Beginning immediately, the price of Fubo's basic programming package is increasing $5, from $74.99 to $79.99. The cost of the add-on sports package and the channel Starz will increase $1 per month.
WHAT'S NEW TONIGHT AND TOMORROW
WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 10TH, 2024:
* Booked: First Day In Season Premiere (A&E)
* Break Point Season Two Premiere (Netflix)
* Criminal Record Series Premiere (Apple TV+)
* Doctor Elise: The Royal Lady With The Lamp Series Premiere (Crunchyroll)
* Metallic Rouge Series Premiere (Crunchyroll)
* Nine Lives Of...Series Premiere (Vice)
* Prison Brides Series Premiere (Lifetime)
* Sengoku Youko Series Premiere (Crunchyroll)
*The Trust: A Game Of Greed (Netflix)
THURSDAY, JANUARY 11TH, 2024:
* Boy Swallows Universe (Netflix)
* Delusional Monthly Magazine Series Premiere (Crunchyroll)
* Detective Forst Series Premiere (Netflix)
* Gordon Ramsay's Road Trip: Spanish Vacation (Fox)
* Killer Soup Series Premiere (Netflix)
* Lift (Netflix)
* Press Your Luck Season Premiere (ABC)
* SkyMed Season Two Premiere (Paramount+)
* Sonic Prime Season Three Premiere (Netflix)
* Southern Charm Season Nine Reunion (Bravo)
* Taking The Stand Season Premiere (A&E)
* Ted Series Premiere (Peacock)
* The Witch & The Beast Series Premiere (Crunchyroll)
* The Wrong Life Coach (LMN)
* This Is Not Financial Advice (Fuse)
* Undercover: Caught On Tape Season Premiere (A&E)
SEE YOU THURSDAY!