Over the last two years, the streaming service Netflix has signaled its willingness to jump into producing original scripted series while also resurrecting “Arrested Development” for another season in 2013.
However, Netflix may not have the spotlight to itself for much longer.
Amazon.com’s production arm, Amazon Studios has announced that it has given greenlights to six comedy projects which will be available free of charge to Amazon Prime members upon completion. Viewer response to the various projects will determine which shows actually go to series.
Among the six pilots are Doonesbury creator Garry Trudeau’s “Alpha House;” which will follow four senators who rent a house together in Washington DC. Trudeau’s Doonesbury newspaper comic strip has been running since 1970 and it earned him a Pulitzer prize in 1975. Trudeau has also received an Oscar nomination for the animated short “A Doonesbury Special.”
Kristen Schaal (“The Daily Show”) and Jason Micallef (“Butter”) are producing “Supanatural,” an animated comedy about “two outspoken divas who are humanity’s last line of defense against the supernatural, when they’re not working at the mall.” The project was created by Lily Sparks, Price Peterson and Ryan Sandoval.
“The Big Bang Theory” veterans Kevin Sussman and John Ross Bowie also have an animated project at Amazon called “Dark Minions;” which follows two working class slackers who are just trying to get by in the middle of an interstellar war.
Andrew Orvedahl, Adam Cayton-Holland and Benjamin Roy (Grawlix) created a live action comedy called “Those Who Can’t;” which was originally sold through Amazon Studio’s open door process. The series revolves around three immature teachers who manage to be even more juvenile than the children they teach.
The remaining two pilots at Amazon both revolve around the news. David Javerbaum (The Daily Show) created “Browsers;” a musical comedy following four young people who work at a news website. Don Scardino (“30 Rock”) is slated to direct the pilot episode.
The Onion News Network’s Will Graham and Dan Mirk will create and produce “The Onion Presents: The News;” which is described as “a fast-paced scripted comedy set behind the scenes of The Onion News Network that shows just how far journalists will go to stay at the top of their game.”
Which of these series would you like to see go forward at Amazon? Let us know in the comment section below!
