During the 2018 Summer Television Critics Association press tour, Amazon TV head Jennifer Salke made a surprise announcement that filmmakers Anthony and Joe Russo are teaming with the streaming service to create what they’re calling a “global television franchise.” The Russo Brothers were obviously way too busy to appear in front of the room full of journalists in person (we repeat, Avengers freaking 4, y’all) but they did send a video message from the set (no, we couldn’t see anything in the background) announcing their plans to shake up what viewers expect from TV moving forward. They’re not just making a TV series. They’re pioneering a new path in the TV landscape with a high-concept project. But … what exactly is a “global television franchise?” Well, no surprise here, but the spoiler-phobic Marvel pathos seems to have seeped in to the Russo Brothers’ brains permanently, because “the creative is under wraps” right now. But Salke did describe the brothers’ AGBO Studios (an artist-led collective focused on creating global content for film, television and digital platforms) and Amazon Prime Video team-up is for a “large-scope, multi-layered international event series.”
The collaboration is an ambitious concept is comprised of multiple different series all under one umbrella. There will be the “origin mothership series” alongside multiple original local language and local production series, tailored to different areas of the world. All of the local series are “meant to enhance the entire entertainment experience” and will be available for the viewer to deep dive into an imagined layered world.
This is a heretofore unheard-of idea, and there’s no telling on if it will be successful or not. But seeing as how the Russo Brothers were able to wrangle all 10 years of Marvel Studios stars under one roof for Avengers: Infinity War and in an unimaginable number of locations around the world, they’re actually the perfect team to attempt to make this happen. If only Amazon had any more information to share about what the franchise will actually be *about,* though. It’s kind of hard to get excited over an entire franchise without knowing a single fact about plot or characters or even genre. Maybe they’ll keep their streak going and have the word “war” somewhere in the title…
But even without knowing details about the series themselves, what do you think of the concept of a global television franchise? Is this something you’d be interested in exploring? Let us know in the comments!
Image: Gage Skidmore/Flickr, Neil Tackaberry/Flickr
