I have disparaged the studio system and Hollywood executives on the cancellation of shows I dearly loved like Firefly 2002-2003, Threshold 2005-2006, Almost Human 2013-2014, and Salvation 2017-2018. Some of these series had legitimate problems like ratings (which probably just needed more time), but some maybe not so much. There are many more examples, and I would bet you could come up with a few on your own.
However, thinking about it, I began to wonder if there were any examples where someone in the business rescued, supported, and generally gave an idea/concept time to develop. Leaning on the Duck Duck Go AI1, I found an executive who did just that. Brandon Tartikoff at NBC is well documented for helping along some programming that became big hits. Cheers, Family Ties, Hill Street Blues, and St. Elsewhere. These shows are good examples of productions with low ratings that, given enough time, became genuine hits. Mr. Tartikoff spotted an interesting perspective on parenthood from Bill Cosby, which led to another hit. Yes, I know, Bill Cosby is not such a great person, but when do you ever know? Sometimes this happens, but it doesn’t mean the product wouldn’t work out. It was a great hit and would have done well in reruns except for what came out. Mr. Tartikoff also pitched to producer Michael Mann “MTV Cops,” which led to the hit series Miami Vice.
I think the problem is the idea that an executive is “a swaggering, overbearing, tin-plated dictator with delusions of godhood!”2. Indeed, I think quite a few are, but to be successful, at least in what used to be the metric (i.e., it was a hit), the executive had to please the board of directors or other bosses; you had to perform in the right direction (i.e., a hit and great proceeds). Even though it didn’t seem to follow this logic in the recent past, I believe that, in their own logic, they were chasing success with certain groups and ideas and were thinking that would give them the rewards and lead to audience numbers, strange as that may seem, especially when it didn’t work that way.
So there are smart executives who look for good properties, including quality writing, quality people, and the patience to see it become a success. I think we can see that from some of the examples of hits today, including some of the independent studios that are making a mark.
Two filmmakers emerging from YouTube are fascinating examples of the new movie industry. Backrooms 2026, a low-budget horror film from 20-year-old first-time filmmaker Kane Parsons, grossed $81.5 million on the first three days in theaters. Obsession (2025), a horror film from 26-year-old Curry Barker, was produced for under $1 million and brought in over $ 26 million by its third weekend.3
For the audience and consumer of the entertainment industry, I think this is good, but like the book publishing industry, there will be less gatekeeping, which means a lot of crap, but what is that in the eye of the beholder?
The End
© J M Strasser All Rights Reserved
Sources
1. GPT-6 DuckDuckGo
2. https://www.ditl.org/episode-quotes.php?Series=TOS&Episode=43
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