MGM Open To More Stargate Depending on Success of Stargate Origins and SGC

[Langley_forum]

The big hit shows at the moment are not cheap. They're high quality and designed for binge watching.

House of Cards
Game of Thrones
Westworld
Handmaids Tale
Star Trek Discovery
Stranger Things

...the list goes on and on.

SGO is trying to do similar, but (presumably) on a tiny budget, because it looks cheap. It's bad compared to the old TV shows, it's worse compared to the newer hits.

I like that it's a test, but if you're going to test, you need to go in a little more seriously. Just my 2 cents.

[Falcon Horus]

The big hit shows at the moment are not cheap. They're high quality and designed for binge watching.

House of Cards -- NTFLX
Game of Thrones -- HBO
Westworld -- HBO
Handmaids Tale -- NTFLX
Star Trek Discovery -- co-op NTFLX & CBS
Stranger Things -- NTFLX

...the list goes on and on.

Notice the pattern...

And here's a brilliant article dealing with what you're saying: TV Series Budgets Hit the Breaking Point as Costs Skyrocket in Peak TV Era

A few notable bits...

“Is $20 million-an-hour television possible? Certainly,” Wells (Finance Chief for Netflix) says. “If you have the numbers of people watching it, we certainly can support that level of quality in terms of TV.”

Fueled by the rise of streaming heavyweights that don’t play by the same financial rules as traditional TV players...

MGM falls into that latter category.

The estimates on the cost of content that emerged from these interviews [with finance people] peg the typical range of the production budget for high-end cable and streaming dramas at $5 million-$7 million an hour, while single-camera half hours on broadcast and cable run from $1.5 million to more than $3 million. With the exception of HBO, which made its mark with lavish productions, that’s a significant increase, during just the past five years, over what had been $3 million-$4 million for cable dramas and around $1 million-$1.5 million for single-camera half hours.

And you can add MGM to this line...

ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox are still struggling to adjust to an environment in which they’re not the first stop (or even the second) for hot new projects.

Related to GoT on HBO and their budget...

And then there’s “Game of Thrones,” the reigning king of big-budget dramas. The $15 million-plus price tag is due in part to a shooting schedule that more resembles that of a feature film than an episodic series. But “Thrones” is an anomaly. When it debuted, its price tag was in line with what HBO typically spends on dramas, around $6 million or so. But as the program grew into a four-continent behemoth with multiple production units shooting at once, it also began to generate dozens of healthy revenue streams for HBO. Its merchandising lines and foreign sales have brought plenty of gold to the network, and it’s been an effective branding flagship as the premium cabler transitions into the nonlinear age with HBO Now.

And an interesting bit on license fee and production costs balancing each other out:

There’s also a greater focus among talent to secure bigger fees up front in their negotiations with networks and streaming services: It’s hard to bank on the value of profit-participation points down the road when the streaming giants are increasingly focused on holding global distribution rights over 10- and 20-year periods.

That same business model is another reason why budgets at Netflix and Amazon have gone sky high. Most outside studios receive a predetermined percentage of a show’s license fee as a profit margin, to compensate for the lack of international and domestic syndication licensing. The bigger the production budget, the bigger the license fee — hence the bigger the studio’s margin.

In this scenario, studios have every incentive to push for the biggest budgets, unlike the traditional model in which the network license fee for new shows typically doesn’t cover the entire cost of production. Under the old model, when studios absorb deficits at the outset, there’s every incentive to keep budgets tight in order to minimize the red ink that has to be made up through international sales and domestic syndication.

I like that it's a test, but if you're going to test, you need to go in a little more seriously. Just my 2 cents.

The idea that Origins is a test -- like an audience test, is ridiculous since fans are never enough of a crowd to sustain a show.

[Gatefan1976]

I definately don't want a reboot, because I would like to see a few new mini-series and a new spin-off.

I have got a few ideas already how I would imagine a new Milky Way based SG series.

Or if it is in an other galaxy then it would be nice to see a new gatework again. This is almost a tradition for every new SG show.

This, but no bloody phone home device
Atlantis was at it's best when they were cut off and alone, or with the -occasional- contact with Earth.
The best SGU eps were when there was no contact with Earth.
ST: Voyager, same deal.

[Langley_forum]

Notice the pattern...

And here's a brilliant article dealing with what you're saying: TV Series Budgets Hit the Breaking Point as Costs Skyrocket in Peak TV Era

A few notable bits...

“Is $20 million-an-hour television possible? Certainly,” Wells (Finance Chief for Netflix) says. “If you have the numbers of people watching it, we certainly can support that level of quality in terms of TV.”

Fueled by the rise of streaming heavyweights that don’t play by the same financial rules as traditional TV players...

MGM falls into that latter category.

The estimates on the cost of content that emerged from these interviews [with finance people] peg the typical range of the production budget for high-end cable and streaming dramas at $5 million-$7 million an hour, while single-camera half hours on broadcast and cable run from $1.5 million to more than $3 million. With the exception of HBO, which made its mark with lavish productions, that’s a significant increase, during just the past five years, over what had been $3 million-$4 million for cable dramas and around $1 million-$1.5 million for single-camera half hours.

And you can add MGM to this line...

ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox are still struggling to adjust to an environment in which they’re not the first stop (or even the second) for hot new projects.

Related to GoT on HBO and their budget...

And then there’s “Game of Thrones,” the reigning king of big-budget dramas. The $15 million-plus price tag is due in part to a shooting schedule that more resembles that of a feature film than an episodic series. But “Thrones” is an anomaly. When it debuted, its price tag was in line with what HBO typically spends on dramas, around $6 million or so. But as the program grew into a four-continent behemoth with multiple production units shooting at once, it also began to generate dozens of healthy revenue streams for HBO. Its merchandising lines and foreign sales have brought plenty of gold to the network, and it’s been an effective branding flagship as the premium cabler transitions into the nonlinear age with HBO Now.

And an interesting bit on license fee and production costs balancing each other out:

There’s also a greater focus among talent to secure bigger fees up front in their negotiations with networks and streaming services: It’s hard to bank on the value of profit-participation points down the road when the streaming giants are increasingly focused on holding global distribution rights over 10- and 20-year periods.

That same business model is another reason why budgets at Netflix and Amazon have gone sky high. Most outside studios receive a predetermined percentage of a show’s license fee as a profit margin, to compensate for the lack of international and domestic syndication licensing. The bigger the production budget, the bigger the license fee — hence the bigger the studio’s margin.

In this scenario, studios have every incentive to push for the biggest budgets, unlike the traditional model in which the network license fee for new shows typically doesn’t cover the entire cost of production. Under the old model, when studios absorb deficits at the outset, there’s every incentive to keep budgets tight in order to minimize the red ink that has to be made up through international sales and domestic syndication.



The idea that Origins is a test -- like an audience test, is ridiculous since fans are never enough of a crowd to sustain a show.

Great answer, thanks. I think that's the landscape that Origins (and anything else Stargate that MGM might consider) is finding itself in.

If you go in cheap and small, you're going to fail.

And unfortunately, that's how it feels right now. SGO is a disappointment, and the SGA/SGU continuations in the comics are really poor.

I really like Malozzi's idea of a new show which can respect established continuity by having new POV characters learn about the bigger universe, and through them a new audience is introduced to the mythology. It's perfect, and I'd love to see that done, but done with sufficient budget to allow for good locations (not every planet looking like Vancouver, please), decent VFX (unlike SGO), one or two big names to attract attention, a solid writer's room etc, otherwise I fear it would fail.

[Platschu]

Have you seen the Altered Carbon? And even "Lost in space" is coming in April on Netflix. So if we get a new SG show or any mini-series, than MGM must really consider to invest more as the production quality standards of these show shave been put really high. That is how a scifi should look like 2018. And even if the SG has got a great past, it won't gain new viewers if they got such a poor and cheap look.

I also wouldn't mind if they would use more digital sets. Or maybe a smaller filming crew could travel around the globe to find new shooting locations and record some locals floras and faunas for the blue box shots, if they can be combined at all. For example I always wanted to see a stargate in the savannah with baobabs or dragon trees in the background etc. Or just simply to see some different environments. But even if they would add CGI trees with extreme look that can not be that expensive nowadays, just you have to build the models. There are so many effects teams now.

[Platschu]

https://www.gateworld.net/news/2018/...-could-return/

So I believe Darren voted for the MGM-Netflix cooperation. I wish it would be true.

[Supergater]

Platschu: I like that you kept these quotes from SG-1 alive. Seem very appropriate now. Lemme repost it with larger font for people to notice.

Never underestimate your audience. They're generally sensitive, intelligent people who respond positively to quality entertainment. - Col. Mitchell "SG-1:200"

[Platschu]

Thank you. The first one is from Rising when Atlantis reached the surface of the ocean:

"I was hoping for another day. Looks like we just got a whole lot more than that. Let's not waste it."

Just it reminds me that the PTTB can't afford bottle episodes and cheap solutions and pointless standalones as any episode could be the last one forever. So I hope we get a new show and than they will treat every episode like a season finale. Hopefully they will get the budget for it, so we can see the glorious return of the Stargate, but then every episode will be like a mini-movie what they used to say about SG-1 season 1 20 years ago.

Maybe I am still a dreamer, but if the fourth series could be successful in 2019 or 2020, then maybe they could start a fifth series 1-2-3 years later. I would strongly vote for an MW based new 4th series, because we need to rebuild the foundation of SG-1/Atlantis/Universe, then we can start to expand the world to new gate works in the 5th series.

[thekillman]

So I believe Darren voted for the MGM-Netflix cooperation. I wish it would be true.

It comes down to money. I don't think MGM will be happy to collaborate with Syfy again given their history. However, Netflix may not want in on it. It seems heavily geared towards creating it's own IP right now.

That being said, Stargate has historically been a safe financial bet. SG1, SGA, they brought in consistent money for many many years. That's going to be a convincing argument for any future pickup.

[thekillman]

Maybe I am still a dreamer, but if the fourth series could be successful in 2019 or 2020, then maybe they could start a fifth series 1-2-3 years later. I would strongly vote for an MW based new 4th series, because we need to rebuild the foundation of SG-1/Atlantis/Universe, then we can start to expand the world to new gate works in the 5th series.

If we're to see a continuation then i'd like to see a story about the SGC/Lucian Alliance war. As Darren put it, SGO could use the "one story per season" model where it explores various ideas while a 5th series runs concurrently and picks up the story somewhere else.

[Platschu]

If I readed well between the lines, they will announce a new spinoff or something else this week or next week when Stargate : Origins will end. The real question is if Brad Wright and Robert C. Cooper will be involved or not and I believe that is the reason JM started the campaign. So we can only win this situation to get a new spin-off or to get a new spin-off with the original writers. And it is so exciting after 7-8-9 years of waiting.

[NickEast]

It comes down to money. I don't think MGM will be happy to collaborate with Syfy again given their history. However, Netflix may not want in on it. It seems heavily geared towards creating it's own IP right now.

It probably isn't that negative. There are a lot of shows and films which are not Netflix Original, but are being financed and sometimes even produced by Netflix under that banner. There's Longmire, Star Trek Discovery, and more, but most importantly Travelers by Brad Wright. They have a connection to the man responsible for the Stargate TV franchise.

Screw SyFy, and even from an objective, financial, point-of-view, Netflix is the best bet. Stargate adds more variation to the existing Netflix Original catalog, has a pre-existing fanbase, and there is no issue with international distribution, allowing MGM to cash in immediately from fans around the world and not just 6 countries.

[planet_tv]

Just a quick question: If more Stargate were to end up on Netflix, would it still come out on DVD and Blu-ray at some point, an example: Season 4 of The Killing, or would it just be viewable on Netflix, an example (as of now): Travelers (excluding Canada since it's on TV there)?

[NickEast]

Just a quick question: If more Stargate were to end up on Netflix, would it still come out on DVD and Blu-ray at some point, an example: Season 4 of The Killing, or would it just be viewable on Netflix, an example (as of now): Travelers (excluding Canada since it's on TV there)?

It's definitely possible, but it depends on whoever is behind it. However, the experience with the canceled Direct-to-DVD movies could mean MGM is not seeing the benefit of physical media anymore. The other alternative would be digital download, so you buy it and own it digitally.

[Gatefan1976]

It's definitely possible, but it depends on whoever is behind it. However, the experience with the canceled Direct-to-DVD movies could mean MGM is not seeing the benefit of physical media anymore. The other alternative would be digital download, so you buy it and own it digitally.

Netflix shows get DVD releases here at least.