Netflix has faced rising criticism over its recent cancellation of popular shows. Social media is inundated with rants of Netflix subscribers, all of whom have leveled accusations against Netflix of not caring for viewers’ sentiments and likings. Netflix has cancelled several popular shows recently, in some very shocking decisions. Those that were cancelled after just one season include Hillary Swank’s space drama Away, Teenage Bounty Hunters, I Am Not Okay With This and The Society. David Fincher’s Mindhunter and sci-fi show Altered Carbon got the axe after Season 2. Glow Season 4 was cancelled despite being green-lit earlier by Netflix.
Now, for the first time, Netflix’s top brass has replied to the solid criticism directed towards Netflix, and the movers and shakers that make the decisions.
Speaking at the Paley International Council Summit, Bela Bajaria, Global Head of TV at Netflix, informed media persons that Netflix‘s rate of renewal of shows is at par with industry standards. According to the data she revealed, Netflix apparently has a show renewal rate of around 67%. Ted Sarandos, Co-CEO at Netflix, who was present alongside her, added that it only seemed as if Netflix was cancelling more shows than the rest of the industry, because it was “disproportionately big news” when a show gets cancelled at Netflix.
Adding to the facts and figures regarding shows at Netflix, Bela Bajaria added that since Netflix makes a large amount of first season shows, it sometimes feels that they have more first season cancellations. But that does not mean that Netflix doesn’t have long-running shows. She gave the example of The Crown, soon to debut Season 4; Grace & Frankie, and The Ranch. She further averted that Netflix has a healthy mix of shows that “are great to be told in a limited series form and shows that go on for multiple seasons.”
Sarandos added a very convincing point of view to the raging issue. He said, “It seems like in this new age of television, the business model is a little different. The things that marked success prior to Netflix and OTT really had been getting to syndication, that was the goal and anything that didn’t get to 100 episodes or past the four seasons didn’t feel like a success, whereas I think many shows can be a success for being exactly what they are and you could tell that story in two seasons or one season or five seasons. I think it gets talked about so much because it’s measured against the old way of doing things.”
Well, we think his is a valid point when you think of it that way. However, what about the shows that end on a cliffhanger and then don’t get renewed for a new season, leaving viewers with no sense of closure? Why not give every season a fitting end, so that if a show does get cancelled, as a lot of them do, the audience does not feel disgruntled at the ending of a beloved show.
But that is a question for another time. Maybe Netflix head honchos Reed Hastings, Ted Sarandos and Bela Bajaria will address this query at a later date.
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