Ryan Murphy’s Shocking Netflix Move: Who Won? Who Lost?

First of all, a congratulations is in order. A huge round of applause to Ryan Murphy, as Deadline reports the prolific TV creator has just accepted a $300 million deal with Netflix. Under the deal, all of Murphy’s new projects for the next five years will exclusively premiere on the streaming service. If we were talking about any other creator, Netflix would have likely purchased two, maybe three unannounced shows. However because this is Ryan Murphy, the sky is the limit when it comes to how many new projects Netflix has just gambled on.

Murphy’s rise from TV critic to the king of TV can only be described as meteoric. Murphy started as an entertainment journalist for publications such as The Miami HeraldLos Angeles Times, and Entertainment Weekly. The creator didn’t really enter the television landscape until the short-lived Popular premiered on the WB in 1999. A few years later he found his TV home when Nip/Tuck premiered on FX in 2003. Ever since then, it’s been a match made in television heaven.

Murphy hasn’t merely created some good shows for FX and its sister company Fox. American Horror Story and Glee still stand as tone-defining shows for these brands. In 2016, Murphy was almost single-handedly responsible for most of FX’s awards wins for The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story. Ryan Murphy’s projects have the potential to capture everything a channel or streaming service could want — critical attention and widespread mass appeal. It’s an excellent get for Netflix, but it’s also a contract that shifts the balance of television. What exactly does Netflix’s new deal with Murphy mean for the creator? How many Murphy-exclusive projects can we expect to appear on the streaming service? And what does this move mean for FX and Fox? Here’s your guide to the winners and losers of this new deal, ranked from who came out on top to who will suffer the most.

Photo: Getty Collection

 

The Winners: Ryan Murphy

It’s fairly safe to say that Murphy and his $300 million paycheck are the undisputed winners of this deal. Murphy as a creator has always enjoyed pushing boundaries. Just two years ago, The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story became the first cable show to drop the word “motherfucker.” You just have to see one episode of American Horror Story to realize Murphy likes to push the envelope with his projects, and moving from the standards-filled worlds of FX and Fox to the anything-goes realm of Netflix is sure to be creatively liberating.

Logistically, this deal means that for the next five years Murphy and Ryan Murphy Productions will produce new shows and films exclusively at Netflix. The deal will go into effect on July 1, and Murphy already has two projects slated for Netflix — the One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest spin-off series led by Sarah Paulson, Ratched; and the Ben Platt-starring The PoliticianHowever, Murphy will still be involved in his eight (!!!) other shows on FX and Fox.

Photo: Getty Images

 

The Winners: Netflix

Long story short, Netflix probably just bought a ton of television. Let’s take a look at arguably the most productive five-year period of Murphy’s career — 2012 to 2016. During that time, Glee was on the air, and Fox premiered Scream Queens. On the FX side, Murphy debuted five new seasons of American Horror Story and kicked off a new franchise with American Crime Story. That’s four shows — not counting Oxygen’s The Glee Project, NBC’s The New Normal, and HBO’s The Normal Heart. Some of those shows were more successful than others — The New Normal and Scream Queens didn’t last long — but still. Murphy’s name was attached to six shows and one movie during that five-year span. That’s what Netflix is investing in.

The only asterisk next to the pros of Murphy’s Netflix deal has to do with Murphy himself. When Ryan Murphy and his team’s produce good projects, they have the potential to change the television landscape. Early seasons of American Horror Story and Glee certainly had that impact. But Murphy has also been responsible for some truly cringeworthy moments in TV history. American Horror Story: Hotel was a confusing mess, and Glee wasn’t exempt from producing some truly terrible TV moments (“Shooting Star” comes to mind). At FX there seems to be a system where Murphy provides the ideas, and it’s up to the rest of his highly skilled team to carry out his vision. If that system carries over to Netflix, everything should work out beautifully.

This also isn’t the first time Netflix has swooped in to grab a hugely popular name in the network television landscape. ABC’s defining voice Shonda Rhimes will be moving to the streaming service soon, where she will join other huge television names like Jenji Kohan and David Fincher. It’s a good move for Netflix that will likely result in several exclusive series. And god knows the streaming service has more than enough money for these kinds of deals.

What’s most interesting on Netflix’s side of this deal is its timing. A $300 million deal is nothing to laugh at, even when it is going to an investment as sound as Murphy. However, it’s coming right as Apple (and Apple’s wallet) is poised to enter the television landscape in a major way. It would be a mistake to say that this deal was made directly as a reaction to Apple’s intentions, but it certainly won’t hurt Netflix in this more competitive streaming landscape.

Everett Collection

 

The Meh: Fox

Murphy leaving Fox has got to hurt, but it’s not an irreparably damaging blow to the network. Murphy has given Fox one truly great show that dominated pop culture for years — Glee. But Murphy’s time at Fox has been notably inconsistent. Scream Queens started off strong but fizzled out quickly, and it’s too early to tell what the future has in store for 9-1-1 (though several episodes in, it’s been a consistent performer for Fox, and already renewed for a second season).

Ultimately, Murphy leaving 20th Century Fox TV is a blow for Fox, and it hurts Disney’s attempted acquisition of the network. However, it’s not the end of the world.

FX Networks

 

The Losers: FX

Send nice thoughts to John Landgraf today: the president of FX is likely sweating bullets. Ryan Murphy practically is FX at this point. Not only did Murphy give the network its first major series — Nip/Tuck — Murphy’s work has been almost solely responsible for FX’s larger ratings nights and awards wins. FX depends on Murphy more than the network is likely willing to let on.

So far, three of FX’s highest rated shows have come from Murphy — American Horror Story, American Crime Story, and FEUD. The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story was an immediately popular hit, so much so that the network took a hit when it didn’t air another season of American Crime Story last year. Ratings from 2017 were off 9 percent overall and 14 percent year over year in the demo. FEUD: Bette and Joan failed to get the audience and awards wins of American Crime Story, but it did garner critical attention and multiple nominations. Likewise, The Assassination of Gianni Versace, while not the runaway success of the O.J. Simpson season, seems to be doing all right both critically and ratings-wise. FX even has a fourth Murphy show scheduled to premiere later this year — Pose. Murphy’s shows work for FX, and right now not much else does.

The only other show that’s managed to get ratings comparable to Murphy’s projects are Tom Hardy‘s Taboo and Noah Hawley‘s Legion. The network used to have Louie, but following the allegations levied against Louis C.K., the network has since ended its relationship with the comedian and creator. That leaves FX with a bunch of critically-adored shows that have historically struggled to find an audience and can’t seem to win awards. On the comedy side that means Better Things, Baskets, and You’re the Worst. On the dramatic side, that includes Fargo, Snowfall, and The Americans.

However, things aren’t all bad at FX post-Murphy. Archer and It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia — both on FXX — still stand as adored comedies with cult audiences. Likewise the premiere of Atlanta Robbin’ Season and FX’s overall deal with Donald and Stephen Glover, which includes an animated Deadpool series, will likely produce great results for the network. FX has also announced that it will be moving forward with a Sons of Anarchy spin-off series, Mayans MC.

And this doesn’t mean that American Horror Story, American Crime Story, FEUD, and Pose will be coming to an end. FX will still continue to air new seasons of all of these shows, and Murphy will still be involved. Counting an upcoming sci-fi season of AHS, the Katrina and Monica Lewinsky seasons of ACS, and the Princess Diana and Prince Charles season of FEUD, that means FX has at least five more seasons of television to expect from Murphy. The Netflix deal is a major blow for the network, yes. But it would be a mistake to think of this a death toll for FX.

Michael Becker/Fox

 

The Losers: Traditional TV

First ABC lost Shonda Rhimes to Netflix. Then Apple’s deal with Reese Witherspoon drastically increased the price of Big Little Liess second season. And now Fox and FX have lost Ryan Murphy. Streaming services and their huge budgets have always affected traditional television, but Murphy’s new contract drives another nail into what can be seen as traditional TV’s coffin. The only question left: which mega-producer will jump ship next?