We love Lionsgate’s CEO even if he doesn’t take our BLLB (Beloved Leader Larry B)’s calls…and hasn’t for about 25 years, come to think about it. Yikes!
The following tells why we feel as we do. No, it isn’t rebellion against the BLLB it’s the fact that the more success Lionsgate has, the more job opportunities there are for writers like us. Gigs, baby, gigs! Yay team!
by David Lieberman
The premium video service is performing well financially and is “going to start looking at original series,” Lionsgate CEO Jon Feltheimer told analysts this morning. Co-owned by his company, Viacom, and MGM, “we’re capable of creating some cool original content.”
And it should help EPIX as it negotiates carriage deals with cable and satellite companies. “One or two great scripted shows can drive an entire channel or network, so they’d consider it a plus for us.”
Indeed, Feltheimer says, execs are engaged in “pretty significant conversations with [pay TV distributors] who look at EPIX as a channel that they can use in a smart way” as they craft streaming TV Everywhere packages. “We’ve got a fantastic theatrical line-up” that includes “a lot of original stuff, but not scripted.