In Hollywood these days, everyone is dying for Disney’s crown as the king of animation.
Animation has gone crazy in the wake of the Tinseltown epidemic, which has halted live action production and there is a quick demand for family-friendly content that can be streamed at home.
Sources said that studios are now investing money in making cartoons as before – despite knowing that the makers of “Mikki Mouse” and “Frozen” will be difficult, if not impossible.
“All streamers wanted animated shows to brand their network, but the epidemic has made it even more so. Everyone is doubling up, ”said Titmouse founder and president Chris Prenoski, who has worked on shows like MTV’s” Beavis and Butthead “and Nickelodeon’s” Big Show of Baby Sharks “!
The animation deals are “exploding”, with a dealer paired with a top Hollywood agency that has also seen a budget for animated content balloons. Before the rise of streaming, the animated budget was between $ 350,000 and $ 750,000 per episode. Now, some shows have sources with budgets of more than $ 5 million.
Netflix has made no bones about its efforts to challenge Disney in the animation space. “We’re taking a lot out of catching them [Disney] Netflix founder and co-CEO Reid Hastings said in January that perhaps he would have a long way to go to catch up – and that he would eventually go a long way to catch them.
But it’s not just Netflix that is eager to take away Disney’s market share. HBO Max, Paramount + and Amazon Prime Video, to name just a few, have also jumped into the race as an epidemic of film and other forms of TV production.
Before the rise of streaming, the animated budget was between $ 350,000 and $ 750,000 per episode. Now, some shows have sources with budgets in excess of $ 5 million.
And it’s a trend that’s expected to last for years to come – even after the epidemic ends – as Hollywood studios for family-friendly content helped them win the streaming war.
“I think it will be very interesting in the next few years in the animation industry,” said Sam Register, president of Warner Bros. Animation and Cartoon Network Studios. “We all have very good material. We all have excellent IPs [intellectual property]. We all have studios. I do not think any company is an anticipated major player in this space. “
But experts see Bob Chapek-led Disney maintaining its stature, thanks to its animated content and library building of intellectual property for decades, as well as its solid reputation for providing family entertainment.
“Disney has that platinum brand,” said Moffett Nathanson, media analyst Michael Nathanson. “Even if there is a slight loss” it will remain at the top, he predicted.
“For other products, HBO Max, Paramount +, you have to convince people, who are new to those brands, that the brand stands for children’s entertainment,” he said.
Nathanson said there is more room to compete in adult animation.
This is one of the reasons AT&T’s new streaming service HBO Max – divested by its Warner Bros. studios – paid more than $ 500 million for streaming rights that “South Park” had before its 2020 launch Will engrave
This year, Jason Killer’s WarnerMedia-run studio created a family-friendly animated hit with their “Tom and Jerry” film starring Chloe Grace Moretz, which debuted in theaters simultaneously last month and on HBO Max. The comedy, based on the 1940s cartoon, grossed $ 13.7 million on Opening Weekend – the best domestic opening of the year.
Warner, who made new episodes of “Looney Tunes” for HBO Max last year, is also slated to debut “Gremlins”, an animated prequel based on the 1984 film, later this year.
Amazon went the adult route with its first original animation series “Undone” about life after almost dying in 2019. And in March it will debut the adult animated series “Invisible” by “The Walking Dead” creator Robert Kirkman.
The Jeff Bezos-led dreamer has invested in a group of children’s shows including “Pete the Cat” and “Lose in Oz”, as well as licensed shows such as “Dora the Explorer” and “SpongeBob SquarePants”.
Netflix, which launched its animation studio in 2018, has made the biggest progress so far in both family and adult animation. On the adult side, it’s hit “Big Mouth” about a strange teenager, and “BoJack Horseman” about a washed-up Hollywood horse.
For the kids, Netflix released “The Villabies” last year, featuring the voices of Ricky Gerwice and Alessia Cara, about four siblings, as well as the animated musical “Over the Moon”, the legendary ex-Disney The animator was directed by Glenn Mane.
The streaming giant has invested an estimated $ 1 billion for the rights to bring Ronald Dahl’s works into animated form.
Melissa Cobb said, “It looks like we’re in a golden age of animation at Netflix.” “In just a few years we have built a one-of-a-kind studio, facing the creators of walls like the style, language or boundaries of a house.”
But even Netflix is not predicted to start Disney any time soon. “I don’t think Netflix will pass Disney, but Netflix has a great track record and I expect them to have some major hits,” said Jeff Wlodrozak, founder and chief executive of Puffsl Research Group.
“As for other streamers at Disney, keeping up with Disney and Netflix would require spending huge dollars and I question whether most would be able to. But for the next few years,” he said. ” I expect others to try it.
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