Sky Studios CEO Cecile Frot-Coutaz has said there is “no scenario” in which its pay-TV customers will not have access to content from Warner Bros. Discovery streamer Max when it launches in the UK.
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Sky has been the sole home of HBO content in the UK for many years, but it is widely expected WBD will move the content to its own streamer when their current output deal ends in 2025. WBD has not officially set a date for a UK launch, but senior exec J.B. Perrette said earlier this year it would “crazy” not to go direct-to-consumer in the UK.
With that backdrop, speculation has been rampant about what the future of the Sky-WBD partnership will look like, with both sides making positive noises about an agreement without clearly outlining what shape it could take.
Speaking today at the Edinburgh TV Festival, Frot-Coutaz echoed comments Sky CEO Dana Strong made recently as she moved to assure delegates Sky will have to access Max.
“[WBD] will launch Max D2C, but remember we both are a platform and broadcast business,” she said. “There are different scenarios in terms of how the partnership evolves, but there is no scenario where Max isn’t accessible to Sky customers.”
Some HBO shows such as House of the Dragon will remain after the output deal ends, as it was acquired outside of the pact. The acquisition of Max’s high-profile Penguin TV series starring Colin Farrell was also struck separately.
Frot-Coutaz also talked up the strengths of Sky Studios’ originals, which include the upcoming Sky Atlantic and Starz series Sweetpea and the Peacock co-productions Day of the Jackal and Lockerbie . Delegates at the Sky Studios spotlight session saw extended trailers for comedy-drama Sweetpea , in which Ella Purnell plays a meek young women who becomes a killer, and Lockerbie , which stars Colin Firth as grieving father Jim Swire, who led a real-life campaign for justice for those killed in the 1988 Pan Am flight disaster.
“We love the HBO shows and they do well for our customers, but the Sky originals are incredibly popular,” she said. “If you look at the top 20 shows on Sky, only three are HBO. Ultimately, every single market in the world, people would like to see homegrown content. There are always exceptions with the big blockbuster series, but homegrown wins the hearts and minds.”
Frot-Coutaz said that Sky’s low-volume commissioning strategy meant it had been less impacted by the global entertainment industry downturn than rival companies and had continued to “sustain our investment.”
Her comments come a day after she restructured the Sky Studios content team , with promotions for the likes of Meghan Lyvers, Phil Edgar-Jones and Hayley Reynolds. This followed the news Zai Bennett is moving to become CEO of BBC Studios Productions.
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Lyvers, who was named Executive Director of Original Scripted in the rejig, told delegates today that she is pushing harder into returnable UK original series.
These are “returning series that are UK stories for a UK audience, primarily,” she said, adding: “If they travel, great, but it’s really important they are representing the audience and the community across the UK. Those we are making more of and are building up. We’ve been particularly vocal in the last two years that we want to make more [of them].”
Meanwhile new Executive Director of Original Unscripted Edgar-Jones unveiled five originals for Sky Arts. Blue Road: The Edna O’Brien Story is billed as a portrait of Irish writer Edna O’Brien, who died last month aged 93. The film, launching next year, comes from SOS Productions Limited and Tara Films, and is directed by Sinéad O’Shea.
My Week With… follows art expert Kate Bryan as she spends time with iconic and disruptive women artists such as The Guerrilla Girls and Lubaina Himid, with up to half the footage captured on iPhone. Factory Films is the producer.
Pauline Black: A 2-Tone Story is a feature doc debuting in November. It follows the titular Black, who is considered the living embodiment of 2-Tone music and a major player in Britain’s shift towards diversity and the anti-racism, sexism and gender politics of today. Tigerlily Two Productions is the producer, with support coming from Screen Scotland. Jane Mingay serves as director and producer.
Anita Rani – The Brontës: Sisters of Disruption (w/t) will debut next year, exploring the Brontë sisters and tracing their relationship with presenter Rani’s hometown, Bradford. The film is produced and directed for Wise Owl Films by Dhivya Kate Chetty.
Bill Bailey’s Master Crafters: The Next Generation is the third Bill Bailey-fronted Master Crafters series, and will look at four heritage crafts — blacksmithing, letter press printing, mosaics and stone carving — and join junior crafters as they learn their trades. It launches in November. Love Monday TV is the producer.
Sky Max gameshow Rob Beckett’s Smart TV has also been renewed for a second season.
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