Cordkillers 409 - What Isn't a Cash Grab?
Lots of Star Wars info tell us about upcoming films and series. Disney tips its hand toward ads. A new Daredevil from the "Covert Affairs" creators. All that and more on Cordkillers!
This week on It's Spoilerin' Time: Barry (305), Hacks (203-204), Better Call Saul (606)
When we return on June 6: Barry (306-307), Hacks (205-208), Better Call Saul (607), Obi-Wan (101-103)
Download video http://archive.org/download/cordkillers-ep-409/CordkillersEp409.mp4
Download audio http://archive.org/download/cordkillers-ep-409/CordkillersEp409.mp3
CordKillers: 409 - What Isn't a Cash Grab?
Recorded: May 23 2020
Guest: None
Intro Video
Trailer for Netflix's upcoming documentary, "Halftime"
Primary Target
Star Wars content flurry confirmed: New Disney+ series, film updatesKathleen Kennedy: Lucasfilm Won’t Recast Luke Skywalker, Saga Roles
- Vanity Fair published a wide-ranging article on Lucasfilm and Star Wars in advance of Obi-Wan Kenobi premiering on Disney+ this week.
- Obi-wan began as a feature film in 2018 but switched to being a TV series in 2019. Stephen Daldry left and Deborah Chow came on board and convinced Hayden Christtensen to join the project. Debate over Vader's role led to a soundstage booking getting canceled, delaying the production start to March 2020.
- Andor (summer 2022) Bourne film director Tony Gilory starring Diego Luna as Cast Andor. Set years before the events of Rogue One.
- 3rd season of the Mandalorian. 9Turns out Favreau won an argument with Filoni over putting 'the child' into the show.
- Ahsoka (2023) will focus on a continuing story. Most likely her hunt for Grand Admiral Thrawn. Rosario Dawson admitted she shared a post saying Christensen would appear in the series without knowing whether that was true. Mary Elizabeth Winstead will be in the cast.
- The Acolyte (D+ mystery/thriller series) written by Russian doll co-creator Leslie Headland, set 100 years before The Phantom Menace is largely written and into casting. Will the question "How did we get to a point where a Sith lord can infiltrate the Senate and none of the Jedi pick up on it?"
- Code-name Grammar Rodeo is in casting. 4 lead characters 11-12. Coming of age adventure series. led by Spider-Man: No Way Home's writer and director, Chris Ford and Jon Watts. Set contemporary with the Mandalorian
- MOVIES
- Next film coming is directed by Taika Waititi and writer Krysty Wilson-Cairns (1917) (possibly August 2023?)
- Next after that is Rogue Squadron directed by Patty Jenkins. (December 2023?)
- Rain Johnson deal "back burnered"
- Kennedy denied anything specific with Kevin Feige.
- No mention of Benioff and Weiss
- And finally Kathleen Kennedy talked about steering away from he Skywalker saga and recasting or enhancing old characters.
- “Maybe I should have recognized this before. We would never make Indiana Jones without Harrison Ford."
- “We also can’t go do something with Luke Skywalker that isn’t Mark Hamill,”
- "Just staying within the construct of George’s storytelling, to keep chipping away at that, I think would be wrong. It’s our job to step away now, but still have a connection to the mythology that George created. That won’t stop. But we are moving on from the Skywalker saga. That’s what’s taking a lot of time, discussion and thought right now."
How to Watch
Disney Plus' Cheaper Tier With Ads Set to Guard Its Family-Friendly Image
Disney+ Will Have Fewer Commercials Than Hulu, But Buyer Demand Is “Extraordinary”, Ad Chief Rita Ferro Says; Netflix And Other Newcomers Should Note “It Isn’t Easy”
Disney Plus with ads will keep the breaks down to four minutes per hour
- Disney+ announced some details about its ad-supported cheaper tier coming later this year.
- No political or alcohol ads.
- No ads on preschooler profiles and no ads in shows targeted at preschoolers
- Ad breaks will average 4 minutes per hour (similar to HBO Max, a minute less than Peacock - Hulu runs 9-12 ads per hour) Start with 15-30 second breaks at first.
- Ad-free is $8 right now. Sounds like that may go up when the ad-supported version launches. No prices were announced though.
- Defended widening of types of content
- Disney CFO Christine McCarthy said, “The one thing we hear from subscribers, especially the ones who churn out,” is that “they’re looking for more general entertainment.”
- About half of Disney+ subscribers do not have kids
What to Watch
New ‘Daredevil’ Series In Works At Disney+
- Deadline and Variety's sources say "Covert Affairs (USA)" creators Matt Corman and Chris Ord will make a new Daredevil series. Continuing on from Netflix? Reboot? Something else? We don't know.
'Rick and Morty' to Get Anime Spinoff
- Adult Swim approved an anime version of Rick and Morty called Rick and Morty: The Anime. Tower of God director Takashi Sano will direct. He's done two anime shorts of Rick and Morty before. 10 standalone episodes for Adult Swim and HBO Max. San said, "The multiverse-straddling exploits of Rick and the gang pose challenges to the family bond, but they always rise to the occasion."
'She-Hulk' Release Schedule: When Does Episode 1 Hit Disney Plus?
- "New trailer for the She-Hulk series on Disney Plus is out. Tatiana Maslany plays attorney Jennifer Waters, cousin to Bruce Banner.
- 9 episodes, starting August 17"
Eyes On
Brian: Rescue Rangers, Men
Tom: Stranger Things
On the Lookout: RRR, Rise Roar Revolt
Front Lines
Survey shows Netflix is losing more long-term subscribers
Netflix rolls out a new discovery feature for kids
Netflix Plans to Expand Audio Descriptions, Subtitling in More Than 10 Additional LanguagesNetflix has been screening new shows and movies among subscribers before their release
Netflix Hit By Layoffs; About 150 Mostly U.S.-Based Employees Affected
How to see everything you've watched on Netflix and other streaming services
- While Netflix has some of the best retention numbers of any streaming service, it's reaching saturation. The Information cites a survey from Antenna, finding that 14% of cancellations in Q1 of this year were from people who had been with the service for more than three years. This is consistent with Netflix signing up fewer new users as well.
- As Netflix reaches saturation it's cutting costs, laying off about 150 of its 11,000 employees, including some executives.
- And Netflix can't just spray money at shows anymore, it needs to find out what's most likely to work. Variety says Netflix is showing upcoming TV shows and movies to select members of the public in order to get feedback.
- And of course Netflix also continues to add features.
- Mystery Box is a feature that's basically the "Play Something" button but for kids.
- Audio descriptions are coming in 10 more languages.
Weather Channel Live-Stream Makes Cable Network Ready for Cord-Cutters
- The Weather Channel is going a la carte. A live stream is available that you can access by logging in with your cable subscription credentials or paying $2.99 a month. The Weather Channel Live TV app is available on Fire TV and Android TV and coming soon to Roku, Samsun, Vizio and Xfinity Flex.
Google TV’s individual profiles are arriving after being delayed for a few months
- Google TV's individual profile feature is rolling out over the next few weeks to devices running Google TV. Reminder, Google TV is a special Google implementation of Android TV. Profiles lets different individuals in a house get separate recommendations, watch lists and Google Assistant responses.
HBO Max Broken Out in Nielsen Streaming Estimates for First Time, Notches 1% Share of April TV Viewing
- Nielsen's April edition of The Gauge estimates streaming TV made up 30.4% of total viewing, a new high, and up from 29.7% in March. Cable still led with 36.8% of viewing and Broadcast had 24.7%. Netflix led the way among streamers with 6.6% of total viewing followed by YouTube with 6.1%. HBO max showed up on the chart for the first time with 1%.
CW Boss On Future Of Net’s DC Universe Amid Ownership Changes: “We Are Staying In The Superhero Business”
‘Dancing With The Stars’ Move To Disney Plus Behind Judge Bruno Tonioli’s Decision To Quit UK Show After 18 Years
Margot Robbie, Jay Roach Team for New ‘Ocean’s Eleven’ Movie
Amazon's latest stunt is beaming a new Prime Video sci-fi show into outer space
Peacock’s Queer as Folk looks ripped from the headlines in first trailer
‘The Beatles: Get Back’ Doc Set for Release on Blu-Ray and DVD This Summer — This Time It’s for Real
‘Squid Game’ Season 2 Won’t Release Until End of 2023 or 2024, Creator Predicts
- CW canceled DC series, Legends of Tomorrow, the Batwoman and Naomi, leaving The Flash, Superman and Lois and Gotham Knights on the air.
- Dancing with the Stars judge Bruno Tonioli will leave the UK version of the show called Strictly Come Dancing in order to focus on the US version because it's moving to streaming which he calls "a big deal."
- An Ocean's Eleven prequel from Jay Roach has brought Margot Robbie on board to star and produce.
- Amazon broadcast the first episode of its SciFi series Night Sky into space using SES and Intelsat.
- Peacock released a trailer for a new Queer as Folk coming June 9th.
- The DVD and Blu-ray editions of the documentary Get Back will arrive July 12th.
- And Squid Game creator Hwang Dong-hyuk told Vanity Fair that the next batch of episodes will come at the end of 2023 at the earliest.
Dispatches from the Front
Dear Tom (and Brian and Bryce),
While talking about TV vs streaming numbers Tom kept saying he's the target demographic for TV programmers and that he's "old."
You're not old. You're Prime Time.
- Ander
Hi Tom, Brian, and Bryce,
That was some commentary in this week's episode! I wouldn't be surprised if I was getting stares based on my reactions to your discussion about the upfronts as I was biking down Broadway this morning whilst listening. 😅
Are both the upfronts and broadcast networks still relevant? My opinion is yes, for both, though both are quickly evolving and pivoting based on how much the landscape has changed.
The upfronts itself; similar to discussions on other trade events like CES and E3, are much more than just the announcements and news that the public reads. There's a lot of business, networking (no pun intended), and negotiation that all happen during this time. It's also still a huge part of how advertising is done as well as how the networks decide what to prioritize as we go into the year. While there is seemingly an endless supply of content out there, there is a limit on "premium" AND mass reach content that advertisers are looking to secure before supply runs out - hence the need to upfront (and commit) early on.
Speaking of content, I would agree that these TV upfronts are quickly evolving. It's not about the big "broadcast" networks (ABC, CBS, NBC, and FOX) in the traditional sense; it's not just about linear TV. NBC's presentation was clear on that - it was almost all about Peacock. Most of the new shows (particularly scripted dramas) were all on Peacock. Even FOX, who probably is the furthest behind when it comes to streaming, spent some time on Tubi, which they acquired. ABC-Disney, Discovery-Warner, and Paramount-CBS are later this week, but I wouldn't be surprised if they spent just as much time on their streaming services. Within the industry, we're slowly shifting away from dilenating between "linear", "digital", or "OTT/CTV" - it's all just (premium) video, and these giant media conglomerates are still some of the biggest players out there. If anything, the fact that they have such a large and connected ecosystem, allows them to provide a more robust advertising experience. To your point Tom, it's becoming less about which shows you're on and more about the ability to reach your target, wherever they are.
Going back to linear TV though, to Brian and Bryce's point - it's not going away just yet. There are still a lot of dollars there, though it will depend on the demo/audience you're looking to reach. While scripted dramas have shifted to streaming platforms, other dayparts like sports and news are still a bit slower to move. Sports is starting to shift, but I think we're still a few years out. Also, for some of the biggest sporting events, the buy is likely to require both linear and digital commitments, as networks are looking to count all eyeballs, no matter where or how they watch.
There was some leaked news this morning that Disney+ will offer an ad-supported tier. HBO Max already offers an ad-supported tier as well. If Netflix moves to one also, then we're back to having nearly every premium long-form video platform having support from advertising (Apple TV+ being the exception). Sure, there are other ways to advertise, including TikTok, Instagram, Twitter, etc. but there are limits to who they reach and what they can do for advertisers. Other concerns such as brand safety, viewability, ad fraud, etc. are also coming to the forefront - something that premium video tends to handle better.
One other comment and clarification around Brian's talk on "impression marketing" and "direct response." I think that was the old way of looking at things. Advertisers have gotten much better at understanding the marketing funnel or "brand to demand". A lot of research goes into understanding how exposure to higher funnel messaging, usually on TV, traditional, or other "awareness" media contributes to actions taken later, where a consumer might be exposed to additional messaging to get them to convert. So all of that earlier work isn't done to be glitzy or glamourous; it does usually require something more punchy to break through all of the ad clutter, but it's understood to be that vital first step to get a consumer to be aware, consider, or find a brand relevant, before they eventually go and make that purchase.
Anyways, love the discussion as always. Looking forward to going to Disney later today and seeing what they have in store!
Reporting from the front lines,
- Derrick
Hello Gentlemen,
I want to offer the following thoughts, In response to your argument discussion, about broadcast tv on Episode 408...
The real benefit of a "traditional" tv companies, over the streamers (Netflix, et all), lies not in the prime time slot, but in the number of ways viewers can access the content...
Let's say the Modern Rogue gets picked up by NBC, and is given one of the coveted prime time slots.
Obviously you'd have access to some number of eyeballs, thanks to the OTA audience, but the show would also appear on any one of the OTT services (both live and DVR), Hulu the next day (for now), and Peacock.
Now in the unlikely event that, NBC decides the live numbers aren't' what they need, they could easily shift the show to be streaming only as a peacock original.
If it were picked up by Netflix, it would only be available on Netflix.
Keep it up
- Clyde
Brian, I am with you 100%!!! I think the barbie show you are talking about is "Barbie: Life in the dream house" I ABSOLUTELY LOVED IT! I would watch it with my kids 4 years ago but still remember so many of the jokes and look forward to a new Barbie show.
Brice, I would love to know if you find it as fun and entertaining as two "mature" guys with kids. :)
Keep killing the cords.
your boss,
- James
Links
patreon.com/cordkillers
doghousesystems.com/v/rogue
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