SPOILER: The Acolyte -- Disney+ Star Wars -- begins June 5, 2024

[Disney Irish]

'we care' because it's not just about 'over' budget, but just how much the thing costs as a whole.

Even 230 vs 180 isn't just 'throw a little extra in there...' that's nearly 25% overrun.. and the details suggest 230 is just the tip of the iceberg... not the wrap up. So my heartburn isn't about 'over budget before production was done' -- It's that 230 was the running tab and we don't even know where the end point was.

And 230... let alone the end point... is still an absurd number for a DTC mini-series.

The problem is that I think too many forget is these aren't typical TV shows, which is what many here I think are trying to compare them to when seeing the budgets and overruns. They are really episodic movies. And so they are budgeted as such, and have cost overruns just the same as any other movie would.

Now should they get back into real true episodic TV shows with similar budgets like traditional linear? Maybe, but I think many here would be disappointed with the quality if that was to happen. So I don't know what the answer is, but its not really for us to answer as its beyond our control.

 

[mickEblu]

We can talk about budgets all day long but as long as Star Wars and Marvel continue to pretend that their audience is not a Masculine dominated demographic they will continue to fail. Stop trying to change reality instead of catering to the audience that exists. It’s like the WNBA. The WNBA doesn’t bring in big money because not enough females care about it.

 

[flynnibus]

The problem is that I think too many forget is these aren't typical TV shows, which is what many here I think are trying to compare them to when seeing the budgets and overruns. They are really episodic movies.

But they don't make money like movies - so comparing them to movies really isn't that practical. And since they've eliminated any licensing or syndication of content... they've narrowed their funnel even more for DTC content.

So yeah, I do think we should be worried about the kinds of budgets they are enabling... and question how the h^$# they think these things will ever return a ROI at these scales.

 

[Disney Irish]

But they don't make money like movies - so comparing them to movies really isn't that practical. And since they've eliminated any licensing or syndication of content... they've narrowed their funnel even more for DTC content.

So yeah, I do think we should be worried about the kinds of budgets they are enabling... and question how the h^$# they think these things will ever return a ROI at these scales.

I understand they don't make the same money as movies, but they really are just episodic movies. Its something that was talked about here many years ago when Mando and the MCU D+ shows first came out. They are taking the same way they shoot movies and using that to make the shows. Its why these things have cost so much, they are doing it as if it were a movie.

That is why its been said that the MCU has really started overhauling everything with their production style because its cost too much with both the movies and the shows to bring down the budgets.

So yeah they can go back to the old way of doing episodic TV like linear with cheaper $1-5M per episode budgets, I'm just not going to be surprised when all the complaints of quality and such start coming up, "it was so much better before".

 

[erasure fan1]

But in the end if this had been more well received no one here would be questioning it really. It would be "oh well I can see where all the extra money went to make it better"

That is correct to a point. I really think if the acolyte was exactly the same from a visuals and effects standpoint, but a phenomenal script, it still gets some criticism over the budget. Because this show, even with a better script, wasn't going to be a ratings juggernaut. There's still too much of a divide amongst the fan base. So a second season wouldn't be a guarantee at that price tag.

So even if it was a lot better, I don't think that high of a budget would be conducive to getting another season. Maybe they push it through with a strict much lower budget? But what they spent was absolutely crazy for a first time show, in a brand new part of the timeline, centering on obviously characters no one knows or cares about, when your fan base is still divided on the direction you are taking star wars. As they say on the Ocho, that's a bold strategy Cotton.

I get things go over budget, there's production problems, all that craziness. But this is a whole different level of insane for how this show turned out.

 

[Disney Irish]

That is correct to a point. I really think if the acolyte was exactly the same from a visuals and effects standpoint, but a phenomenal script, it still gets some criticism over the budget. Because this show, even with a better script, wasn't going to be a ratings juggernaut. There's still too much of a divide amongst the fan base. So a second season wouldn't be a guarantee at that price tag.

So even if it was a lot better, I don't think that high of a budget would be conducive to getting another season. Maybe they push it through with a strict much lower budget? But what they spent was absolutely crazy for a first time show, in a brand new part of the timeline, centering on obviously characters no one knows or cares about, when your fan base is still divided on the direction you are taking star wars. As they say on the Ocho, that's a bold strategy Cotton.

I get things go over budget, there's production problems, all that craziness. But this is a whole different level of insane for how this show turned out.

You say that about how a show of this budget doesn't get a second season, even if it was good, and yet at a $250M price tag for season one Andor got a second season. And I don't recall anyone here having any heartburn for Andor and its budgets.

 

[DisneyWarrior27]

You say that about how a show of this budget doesn't get a second season, even if it was good, and yet at a $250M price tag for season one Andor got a second season. And I don't recall anyone here having any heartburn for Andor and its budgets.

Maybe cuz it was a contractual thing.

 

[Disney Irish]

Maybe cuz it was a contractual thing.

I doubt it, as it was originally planned to be 5 seasons and pared down to 2.

 

[MisterPenguin]

Yoda's cameo alone cost them $10M.

 

[Disney Irish]

Yoda's cameo alone cost them $10M.

Does that come out to like $100 per gray hair?