Following a significant drop in its number of subscribers, Netflix made serious budget cuts, but also canceled projects in production. Is this the start of a new era for the platform?
Is this the end of an era for Netflix? Until recently, the platform was considered the home of many creators, with the guarantee of being able to develop ambitious projects with comfortable budgets and guaranteed artistic control of their work. What no Hollywood studio can currently promise, except to a handful of privileged filmmakers (and still).
The significant drop in subscribers (200,000 users) announced at the start of the week led to a 30% drop in Netflix’s stock market action. Much more than a simple period of turbulence, this negative assessment conceded by the platform (for the very first time in its history) is accompanied by even more negative forecasts for the months to come.
It is therefore to prepare for an inevitable drop in its turnover that Netflix has decided to review its strategy, by making significant budget cuts. A decision that has had a major impact on its animation section, while a first wave of dismissals has already been recorded, with in particular the departure of its director of creative management and development of original animation, Phil Rynda.
Baby Boss as a role model
Netflix’s new strategy would be to develop only high-potential projects, such as the animated series Baby Boss (produced by Dreamworks) regularly cited internally by the platform’s leaders as THE model to follow. Films and series that do not fit into a favorable economic model are therefore no longer welcome on Netflix, a decision that also affects projects in production.
Thus, the adaptation of the comic bone by Jeff Smith, in development for several years, was canceled by Netflix before it even aired! A similar fate has affected other projects, such as Lauren Faust’s new creation (My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic). Originally developed as a series, the adaptation of the novel The Two Rascals by Roald Dahl will see the light of day, but in the form of a feature film.
If the first stage of this recovery plan which does not yet bear its name seems to affect only the animation sector, everything suggests that the other departments of Netflix will also be impacted by these budgetary restrictions.
With the fear that Netflix is exclusively dedicated to the development of franchises worn by stars with XXL salaries and is gradually abandoning more independent projects led by prestigious directors such as Jane Campion and Alejandro González Iñárritu…