Disney Drops Streaming in Wake of Hollywood Strikes

With the combination of the writers and actors strike with the WGA and SAG, Hollywood has come to a standstill. With dozens of productions shut down, networks have been scrambling to come up with a fall lineup that will include something other than scripted series. A slew of unscripted and reality shows will make up most of the fall series, apparently as well as network premieres of streaming originals.

The decision to bring streaming originals to network television comes at a crucial time as ongoing strikes and lack of negotiations bring the entertainment industry to a screeching halt. Major disagreements between the studios and the creatives behind these works have caused the executives to pivot in an attempt to continue airing as normal. Rather than meet their demands and resume production, it seems the strategy now is to rerelease old content onto new venues in an attempt to wait out the allegedly underpaid and understaffed people fighting for better working conditions.

In a surprising twist of events, the highly anticipated Marvel and Disney+ original series, Ms. Marvel, is set to make its debut on ABC next month. The move from the streaming giant to network television raises eyebrows, particularly in the midst of ongoing strikes between SAG-AFTRA, the WGA, and the AMPTP. While some are eager to see Kamala Khan’s superhero journey reach a wider audience, some speculate that this sudden transition is a calculated move by the studios to bide their time and wait out the negotiations.

Initially developed as a Disney+ exclusive, Ms. Marvel generated a positive critical reception on its release although it faced its share of review bombing on websites like IMDb. The series follows the adventures of Kamala Khan, a Pakistani-American teenager from Jersey City with extraordinary energy-projection abilities, as she navigates the challenges of being a teenage superhero. The series ended with a post-credits tie-in scene with Brie Lawson’s Captain Marvel as a way to get fans excited for the upcoming film The Marvels (2023).

This move from streaming to network television may be the norm for now. Some have speculated the strikes could last until August at the earliest and may even extend into the winter. With the current state of things, it’s safe to say that the major studios that have invested heavily in the streaming wars may need to come back to network television in order to keep shareholders confident in their success. Streaming has famously been an underwhelming venture for many, and this may be the first step into a major transformation of the industry as a whole.

What do you think about the decision to bring Ms. Marvel to network television? Share your thoughts in the comments below!