Here's everything you need to know about the world of television for November 22nd, 2024:
PRODUCTION NOTES
Just as a heads-up, next week is of course Thanksgiving week here in the United States, so it's going be a short week for the newsletter. There will be regular newsletters on Monday and Tuesday. Then on Wednesday, assuming there isn't any big news, the newsletter will be a shorter one with the listings for the rest of the week along with some viewing recommendations. Then I'll be back on the beat on Monday, December 2nd. And likely writing the newsletter from LAX as I wait for my plane back to the Twin Cities.
THIS IS WHAT SHOULD WORRY HOLLYWOOD ABOUT YOUTUBE
Journalists and people in Hollywood tend to focus on how much YouTube is watched each month. There are a lot of "OMG, YouTube is the most-watched streamer, what does that mean for Hollywood?" hot-takes. And while that viewing does matter, it's also not fair to compare YouTube viewing numbers to Netflix or other streamers.
Yes, YouTube tops all the streamers in total viewing minutes. But they have a very different business than, say, Netflix. YouTube's viewing is a combination of sports highlights, Minecraft reaction videos, bootleg classic TV and movies, as well as original programming. Comparing YouTube's numbers to that of Netflix is a bit like comparing the number of hours people spent in an Uber with the number of hours someone is driving a 16-wheeler. They both involve driving and they both use the roads. But they are two entirely different businesses.
What Hollywood should be focusing on are the growing number of producers who are building out what is for all intents and purposes traditionally-looking studios that will soon rival some of Hollywood's independent producers.
This profile of Alan Chikin Chow, a top Gen Z creator who is known for his Alan's Universe YouTube series, should concern anyone worried about the future of Hollywood. He has just opened a sprawling new 10,000-square-foot production studio in LA. complete with 10 custom-built sets, professional-grade cameras, and upgraded lighting.
Alan's Universe is a scripted series inspired by K-dramas and it is aimed at the heart of traditional television's tween programming on networks such as Nickelodeon:
Alan produces content aimed at a tween audience. His YouTube drama series, Alan’s Universe, is Korean drama meets Riverdale for a younger audience. With bright pink lockers, theatrical costumes, and triumphant storylines, the series is designed to appeal to the channel's core 7-to-14-year-old audience.
Alan's aim was to capture the market of kids who might have turned to Disney Channel or Nickelodeon a decade ago, but now flock to YouTube for their entertainment. He is especially focused on appealing to young girls.
“We’re serving an audience that doesn’t really have this kind of content anymore,” Chow said. “There’s a lot of boy content out there—MrBeast, IShowSpeed, Kai Cenat—but we’re creating something for the girls, the ones who love K-pop and dream about fantasy worlds.”
One of the fascinating things for me is how he and his team think about YouTube Shorts. Rather than just stripping out short clips and posting them, Chow seems them as a separate form of original content:
Alan was inspired by this and decided to build Alan's Universe out in a way that felt native to short-form video. He constantly monitors what types of stories, themes, and narrative arcs are performing well on YouTube Shorts. For instance, he keeps track of what scenes are getting clipped from the most from popular K dramas. He then takes the storylines or themes of those scenes and adapts them into Alan's Universe.
Instead of publishing a longform Alan's Universe episode then grabbing clips to promote it, Alan and his team produce entirely separate storylines specifically for YouTube Shorts. This way, each YouTube Short can be consumed alone as its own story (though each Short does tie into a broader theme related to the longer episode).
"Shorts are always uniquely made to be Shorts," he added. "This is something I fought with everyone about. Everyone has told me, just make cut downs of the long form episode. But I have been a top Shorts creator since before I even made the show. I know how to make Shorts very, very specifically, and I know how to make them go viral."
Some of these creators are incredibly smart about their business and their audience. They're making TV, but in a way that most people in Hollywood wouldn't recogonize.
I FEEL AS IF THE DETAILS OF THIS DEAL WOULD BE INTERESTING TO LEARN
A spokesperson for A&E sent out this low-key statement on Friday: "The legal dispute between A+E and Big Fish Entertainment and Reelz concerning Live PD has been resolved."
The statement also went on to explain that additionally, A&E Networks and Amazon's Prime Video have reached an agreement on a multi-year, non-exclusive licensing deal. That agreement includes A&E Networks programming appearing on Prime Video, as well as the addition of A&E FAST channels on Prime Video.
From what I can tell, both deals are all part of the same negotiations.
The dispute goes back to June 2020, when A&E canceled its long-running series Live PD in the wake of the George Floyd death. Two years later, Reelz ordered On Patrol: Live from Live PD from Amazon-owned producer Big Fish Entertainment. Several months later, A&E sued both Reelz and Big Fish Entertainment, arguing the new show was a "clone" of Live PD.
On Friday, a lawyer for A&E told the courts the matter had been resolved, but no details were publicly released. What seems to have happened is that Amazon decided to settle the case by signing a new licensing deal with A&E Networks in exchange for A&E dropping the lawsuit against from Amazon-owned producer Big Fish Entertainment. The dispute with Reelz has also been resolved, although it's not what the terms of that settlement might be.
NBC RELEASES A SUITS LA COLOGNE AD...ERR...TRAILER
NBC released the first teaser video for the upcoming spin-off-ish drama Suits LA today and it looks more like one of those odd, cologne ads that features mostly out-of-focus models than an actual TV show you might want to watch.
It's a perplexing choice, but I suspect it might an effort to trick viewers into thinking the series includes most of the original cast from Suits. But don't worry, NBC won't get away with it because Deadline is on the case and delivering a cynical take on the video:
Okay. Never mind.
SPEAKING OF HARD-HITTING JOURNALISM
Thank God I signed for emails from TV Line:
ODDS AND SODS
* They Call It Late Night with Jason Kelce will premiere Friday, January 3rd, on ESPN, complete with a studio audience and a live house band.
* The Writers Guild of America has a tentative three-year deal with PBS member stations. The union announced the new Public Television Freelance Agreement Friday, hours after the current contract expiration.
* Norah O'Donnell’s final night anchoring the CBS Evening News will be January 24th, the CBS network’s news division told its staff on Friday.
* Morning Show co-anchor Mika Brzezinski appeared on The Daily Beast Podcast to explain why her visit to Mar-a-Lago to meet with President-elect Donald Trump is so misunderstood by those mean journalists.
* Peacock and Sky have ordered a second season of The Day of the Jackal.
* Apple TV+ has ordered another season of its upcoming drama series Your Friends & Neighbors. Along with the pickup, the streamer has set April 11th as premiere date for the show, starring and executive produced by Jon Hamm.
* Plex has announced it is overhauling its UI.
WHAT'S NEW TONIGHT AND THIS WEEKEND
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 22ND:
Bia And Victor Series Premiere (Hulu) - [first look video]
Blitz (Apple TV+) - [first look video]
Bread & Roses (Apple TV+)
Christmas On Call (Hallmark)
Conquer: Lahad Datu (Netflix)
Great Performances: Patsy Cline: Walkin' After Midnight (PBS)
I Am Ready, Warden (Paramount+) - [first look video]
Jim Gaffigan: The Skinny (Hulu)
Joy (Netflix)
Outlander Season Seven B Premiere (Starz)
Out Of My Mind (Disney+)
Pimpenero: Blood & Oil (Prime Video) - [first look video]
Rita (Shudder)
Sago Mini Friends Season Three Premiere (Apple TV+) - [first look video]
Spellbound (Netflix)
Tex Mex Motors Season Two Premiere (Netflix)
The Empress Season Two Premiere (Netflix) - [first look video]
The Helicopter Heist (Netflix) - [first look video]
The New York Times Presents: Weight Of The World (FX)
The Piano Lesson (Netflix)
Tia Mowry: My Next Act Season Finale (WE tv)
Transmitzvah (Netflix)
When The Phone Rings (Netflix)
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 23RD:
A Little Women's Christmas (Great American Family)
Christmas In The Spotlight (Lifetime)
James Acaster: Hecklers Welcome (HBO) - [first look video]
Three Wiser Men And A Boy (Hallmark)
SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 24TH:
Christmas By Candlelight (Great American Family)
Endurance (NatGeo)
Married To Medicine Season Eleven Premiere (Bravo)
Sincerely, Truly Christmas (Lifetime)
Suspicion (Prime Video)
To Have And To Holiday (Hallmark)
Tsunami: Race Against Time (NatGeo)
MONDAY, NOVEMBER 25TH:
Acorn TV x TED: Transform Your Thinking Series Premiere (Acorn TV)
Cold Case: Who Killed JonBenet Ramsey (Netflix) - [first look video]
Dear Santa (Paramount+) - [first look video]
Defying Gravity: The Curtain Rises On Wicked (NBC)
Family Guy: Gift Of The White Guy (Hulu)
Get Millie Black Series Premiere (HBO) - [first look video]
SEE YOU ON MONDAY!