In a big twist, it looks like Marvel Studios pulling Inhumans from their release schedule was indeed it’s swan-song from the cinematic universe. Marvel Television has officially announced they’ll instead look towards making it into a network series to air on ABC.
I’m sure this makes fans extremely nervous, as the studio had planned for years to give it a feature film franchise.
It gives the impression that the rift between Ike Perlmutter and Kevin Feige over creative differences have come to ahead here. Ike and his involvement in the television division kept trying to adding major elements from the Inhumans into the series Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (after Feige was able to get full control of the film division) as the show continued to dip in the ratings.
Here’s the full press release via Marvel.
IMAX Corp. (NYSE: IMAX), Marvel Television, a unit of Marvel Entertainment, and Disney|ABC Television Group today announced an innovative agreement to exclusively premiere the new ABC series “Marvel’s The Inhumans” in IMAX commercial theatres, marking the first time a live-action television series has debuted in this manner.
Under the agreement, a version of the first two episodes of Marvel Television’s new series “Marvel’s The Inhumans”–produced in conjunction with ABC Studios and filmed entirely with IMAX digital cameras–will run worldwide exclusively in IMAX for two weeks at the beginning of September 2017. ABC plans to then premiere the weekly series in fall, with additional exclusive content that can only be seen on the network.
The Inhumans, a race of superhumans with diverse and singularly unique powers, were first introduced in Marvel Comics by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby in 1965. Since that time, they have grown in prominence and become some of the most popular and iconic characters in the Marvel Universe. “Marvel’s The Inhumans” will explore the never-before-told epic adventure of Black Bolt and the royal family.
ABC, IMAX and Marvel Television also intend to work together to create a joint marketing and promotion plan for the series across their proprietary media platforms–which would be the first such cross-platform marketing launch of a television series. Today’s agreement also marks IMAX’s first time as a financing participant in a TV pilot and series.
“This unprecedented alliance represents a bold, innovative approach to launching great TV content for a worldwide audience,” said Ben Sherwood, co-chairman, Disney Media Networks and president, Disney|ABC Television Group. “It highlights Disney|ABC’s unrelenting commitment to finding new and creative ways to showcasing our very best programming and increasing global engagement and reach.”
“This first-of-its-kind multi-platform production, distribution and marketing agreement brings together Marvel Television’s unique brand of entertainment, ABC’s unparalleled audience and IMAX’s brand and global fanboy demographic,” said IMAX CEO, Rich Gelfond. “It also takes our decades-long relationship with The Walt Disney Company to a whole new level, jointly breaking new ground in the industry. We are confident our exhibition partners will be excited to work with us on this innovative launch of a series across the IMAX network.”
“We’re happy to see this unique deal come together, working with our partners,” said Dan Buckley, President, Marvel Television, Publishing & Brand. “In an ever-changing world of distribution and consumption, it’s very exciting to be part of a groundbreaking initiative that takes us to the forefront of this evolution.”
This deal also provides audiences with high-quality, compelling entertainment options during what have traditionally been lulls in the summer blockbuster season. These IMAX audiences also tend to have high engagement and positive response to comic book fare.
This seems like a terrible idea as we all know how expensive a series like this could be and that ABC had been notoriously upset with the costs concerning Agent Carter, I don’t see how the network manages to keep Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and Inhumans both on air. I’d assume the former could be getting the axe to make way and some of those characters carrying over.
Kevin hasn’t given any impression that we’ll see Marvel TV characters crossover anytime soon, so this could mean that the Inhumans could be banished to the small screen.
The series is set to debut in 2017.
SOURCE: MARVEL