LOS ANGELES, July 18 (Reuters) – Netflix (NFLX.O) violated Hollywood rules to create an $ 82 billion global streaming colossus that the rest of the entertainment industry hurriedly copied. But when growth slows, it’s retreating for the way forward, borrowing pages from the Walt Disney playbook (DIS.N).
The company is changing the way we watch television and movies to emulate the success of Mickey Mouse and “Star Wars,” by trying to build brands that span movies, television, games and consumer products, executives told Reuters in a recent interview.
The Netflix team is planning ways to suck up more of the larger Netflix shows and movies with the universe and characters that they can awaken to. The franchise strategy, details of which are reported here for the first time, is intended to complement Netflix’s efforts to build a broad library of original programs with something for every taste.
‘STRANGER THINGS’ TREATMENT
Netflix executives point to “Foreign Things” as a model. The science fiction series, now in its fourth season, has inspired items from Surfer Boy’s frozen pizza at Walmart to Magic 8 Ball Toys from Hasbro, plus direct experience. See the article : Top 5 Movies and Shows on Prime Video This Weekend: Chloe and More. The spin-off series “Stranger Things” and stage performances are underway. read more
On its heels, Netflix executives said they plan to or are in the process of giving at least a dozen series and treatment films to “Stranger Things”.
The Spanish series “La Casa de Papel” has been made back in Korean and has a spin-off in the works. The prequel to the District era drama “Bridgerton” has been booked, such as a reality competition where no one dies inspired by the South Korean drama “Squid Game”. The fantasy series “The Witcher” produced an animated film with a prequel.
The company also identified three upcoming events as potential franchises because the stories were known, leading to a built audience.
“The Three-Body Problem,” an adaptation of the first book in a Chinese science fiction trilogy, was produced with Game of Thrones co-creators David Benioff and D.B. Weiss as executive producer. , and a live-action adaptation of the animated series “Avatar: The Last Airbender” recently completed filming.
To be sure, not every story works as a franchise.
The smartphone with the Netflix logo placed on the keyboard in this illustration was taken April 19, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic
The executive aims to produce a franchise from Millarworld, the comic book publisher Netflix acquired in 2017. Millarworld’s first series, “Jupiter’s Legacy,” was canceled after the first season. There are currently six new projects in development, and others in production, said a spokesman, who adds that Netflix has plans to explore the villain “Jupiter’s Legacy” in the new series.
“It should start with the story itself. Why does it support such an expansion?” saur Thunell. “There are some series like ‘Stranger Things’ that are very successful, that have deep mythology, and additional stories that allow you to move into animation or features or anime.”
EMERGING FILM FRANCHISES
The movie studio, starting from scratch five years ago, sees a handful of budding franchises: “Enola Holmes,” about Sherlock’s teenage sister, “Knives Out,” an Agatha Christie -style mystery, “Old Guard,” about an immortal team. This may interest you : That sense of synchronization: how Stranger Things overcame the music industry. mercenaries, the action-thriller “Extraction” and the zombie tale “Army of the Dead.”
Spy thriller “The Gray Man” debuts Friday. Directors Anthony and Joe Russo, whose film director Scott Stuber was praised as “franchise builders” at the film’s premiere in Los Angeles, stated that they created a world rich with memories.
“We definitely specifically designed and thought of this narrative by implementing it in a different form,” said director Anthony Russo in an interview.
Netflix strengthened its franchise building efforts through an October 2020 restructuring under new global TV leader Bela Bajaria, a former Universal Television executive who developed Netflix comedies such as “Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt” and “Master of None.”
When customer growth slows in the fall of 2020, Bajaria strives to extract more from expensive deals with manufacturers such as “Bridgerton’s” Shonda Rhimes. He also builds teams to develop prestigious series and spectacles (often large, effects -driven fantasy series) that can be franchised.
SCOUTING MATERIAL
Netflix adds a consumer product staff and hires in-house book scouts to search for work to adapt, rather than waiting for outside agents or publishers to bring material for its executives. Thunell calls this step a “game changer. Read also : Netflix’s top movies and shows: what’s trending on July 2, 2022.” They also created video game units.
The company has already started involving marketing staff and early consumer products in the franchise building process. The team, for example, recently traveled to London to meet with Benioff and Weiss on the set “Three Body Problems”.
“Army of the Dead” producers Zack and Deborah Snyder gave input about the virtual reality experience while filming, according to Josh Simon, head of Netflix’s consumer products and direct experience division. Timna is currently working with Snyders on ideas related to his next film, “Rebel Moon.”
“We really went into the production meeting,” Simon said. “We can work years ahead because we have a level of trust and collaboration with the creators.”
Steven Ekstract, CEO of Global Licensing Advisors, said “Stranger Things” alone has the potential to generate $ 1 billion in annual retail sales starting in 2025 of products, events and the possibility of theme park rides or digital avatars.
Netflix will receive royalties of around $ 50 million to $ 75 million from those sales, plus free advertising of merchandise. To reach that level, Netflix must keep people engaged with the world of “Stranger Things”, after all.
Streaming services have considerably less experience in erecting franchises than its century -old Hollywood rivals, noted Julia Alexander, director of strategy at entertainment research firm Parrot Analytics.
“Do we have the same confidence in the Netflix machine as we do the Disney machine? No, but some who come from Disney spend years determining what the machine looks like,” Alexander said. “For all Netflix’s dominance in the streaming space, they are still relatively new to building this kind of world.”
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Reporting by Dawn Chmielewski and Lisa Richwine in Los Angeles; Edited by Kenneth Li and Cynthia Osterman
Our Standards: Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
