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Edinburgh: ‘Two Years Out From The End Of The Tunnel’
Fargo and The Handmaid’s Tale producer Warren Littlefield has predicted that the global TV industry’s turmoil won’t end for another two years.
The former NBC President of Entertainment shared his views on surviving as an indie producer during an interview at the Edinburgh TV Festival. He suggested that many expect the current commissioning downturn to end sooner than it actually will.
“The difficulty now is that fewer things are getting made,” he said. “A lot of people are saying, ‘Stay alive ‘til ‘25.’ I think we’re probably two years out from getting through this particular challenging time – two years from seeing the end of the tunnel.”
While acknowledging that streaming services and networks are commissioning shows at a slower rate, Littlefield noted that full-season releases on streaming platforms are a positive shift from the old network cancellation model.
In an engaging discussion, Littlefield emphasized his role in discovering and supporting a creative’s vision as a network executive and producer. He performed this role at NBC during the 1990s with hits like Friends, Seinfeld, and Will & Grace, and more recently with Hulu’s The Handmaid’s Tale and FX’s Fargo.
“The things I loved, I fought for,” he said. “The artists I work with count on me for that. I like being afraid.”
Littlefield recalled rejecting NBC executives’ calls to replace Jennifer Aniston in Friends because she was already contracted to a CBS comedy airing at the same time. He had encouraged her months before casting her as Rachel, leading Warner Bros. to demand NBC assume the financial risk if the show couldn’t proceed due to Aniston’s commitment to CBS’s Muddling Through.
“My business affairs team said it was time to cut Jennifer, but I said, ‘No, we will take the risk and kill that show on CBS,’” he recounted. Friends eventually became one of the most successful TV shows of the 1990s and early 2000s.
He also mentioned how Seinfeld‘s poorly received pilot led to a short series run using funds initially intended for a Bob Hope birthday show. He further shared that executives were worried about ordering Will & Grace due to potential advertiser backlash, but the show turned out to be a major success.
When asked about taking creative risks, Littlefield said: “I just leap and cut against the grain. You can do a gut check: Is the creative vision there? If it’s there, then yes, go, jump.”
He praised Baby Netflix, which was commissioned by his interviewer Anne Mensah, for its “highly specific point of view of the world” that resonated globally.
Littlefield revealed his next venture involves a scripted project in Japan. The series, set in Japanese and based on the concept of ‘jōhatsu’ (The Evaporated), focuses on people who disappear without a trace from their established lives.
Source: Variety
