Cordkillers 604: Mind the Season Gap
Long waits between streaming seasons may be helping some shows build huge return-viewing events, but they also risk training audiences to cancel between releases. Plus, Amazon backs away from Stargate, Netflix pauses Hannibal, Plex gets more social, and states may challenge a giant media merger.
This week on The FULL Experience: Murder, She Wrote (718 - "Where Have You Gone, Billy Boy?")
Next week: Murder, She Wrote (1224 - "Death by Demographics")
YouTube: https://youtu.be/ICsqCbwO2YA
Supply Run
Is a “season” even a meaningful thing anymore? Ampere Analysis says the average gap between seasons of scripted originals on major platforms has nearly doubled, rising from 12 months in 2020 to 21 months in 2025. Those long gaps can drive major engagement when shows return, as seen with Stranger Things, but they also raise the risk that viewers cancel subscriptions when they are not using them often enough.
https://deadline.com/2026/05/the-stranger-things-effect-ampere-report-season-gaps-1236921948/
Search Party
Prime Video has rescinded its series order for a new Stargate series from show veteran Martin Gero. The project had reportedly been in pre-production in the UK after a 20-week writers room.
https://deadline.com/2026/06/stargate-series-canceled-dead-amazon-martin-gero-1236939321/
Netflix has paused pre-production on Hannibal, a film from Antoine Fuqua and Denzel Washington. Washington was set to star, Fuqua to direct, and John Logan wrote the script.
The trailer is out for the fifth and final season of The Bear, arriving June 25.
https://variety.com/2026/tv/news/the-bear-trailer-final-season-5-1236769502/
Buried Treasure
Brian: Spider-Noir
Tom: Star City, with some thoughts on the end of For All Mankind
Got something we should be on the lookout for? Email cordkillers@gmail.com.
Scanning the Horizon
Plex is adding new social features ahead of a major price hike for its lifetime pass. New additions include Lists, upcoming Discussions, and later features like Match Score and alerts tied to lists, movies, shows, and people users follow.
https://techcrunch.com/2026/06/03/plex-launches-new-social-features-amid-a-major-price-hike/
California and New York are reportedly among the states preparing a lawsuit to oppose the Paramount Skydance and Warner Bros. Discovery merger, meaning the deal may still have regulatory trouble ahead.
Sling is selling a $60 “everything worth watching in June” package with more than 50 channels, including the channels needed for the NBA Finals, Stanley Cup Finals, and the beginning of the World Cup.
Apple announced new tvOS 27 features coming this autumn, including adjustable subtitle and on-screen text size, speech-recognition captions when none are offered, hearing aid support, a redesigned Podcasts app, and smart downloads.
Chatter
Chris writes in about whether Backrooms and Obsession really point to a new filmmaking future, or whether Hollywood simply keeps assimilating every new challenger.
Jason shares the streaming services that come to mind first when thinking about where a hot new movie would stream: Apple TV, HBO Max, Prime Video, and Netflix.
George explains why he originally missed the West Wing review: he subscribed to Cordkillers as a podcast, while that review was YouTube-only.
Ben from Woodinville shares two edge-case streaming perspectives: using YouTube as a preferred single service while avoiding the algorithm, and how Hulu’s app shutdown could affect Tesla owners who still use it while charging.
Sean “BraveJhawk” spotted an Oklahoma pitcher named Cord Rager during NCAA baseball, which feels very on-brand for anyone who has fought with the cable company.
Keith sends in a timely Murder, She Wrote-adjacent McSweeney’s piece: “I’m Jessica Fletcher, and I Don’t Even Feel Anything Anymore When I Find a Dead Body.”