Even though traditional movies aren’t going anywhere, we can’t help but see how TV shows are stealing from the film industry playbook. There is clearly a transition happening right now and pretty soon we won’t be able to distinguish movies from TV shows; other than the length, that is.
Here are 5 ways in which TV shows are becoming movies.
1. Many old movies are remade as TV shows
Pretty much everyone complains about sequels and remakes but the fact is that some movies that were reimagined as TV shows are pretty good. Just look at Hannibal and Fargo, if you don’t believe me.
While many TV shows, such as Aeon Flux and The Flintstones were made into movies, it isn’t the same thing. Those movies were just awful and truly forgettable. To be fair, there are some exceptions, like The Untouchables and The Beverly Hillbillies but that’s pretty much it.
The list of movies that have been turned into TV shows includes Uncle Buck, Real Genius, Rush Hour, In Good Company, Problem Child, Minority Report, Big, Wet Hot American Summer, Scream and 12 Monkeys.
Even though many of these shows weren’t all that great, these days if you’re on a network it usually means that the plot of your show is going to be great.
2. TV shows are coming to IMAX
HBO is breaking the ice by making its hit TV show Game of Thrones available in IMAX theatres. It was a win-win situation for both IMAX and the show as it seems the theatre is actually struggling these days.
While you may be wondering why IMAX is jumping on the TV show bandwagon, it’s pretty clear that all the company wants to do is get a piece of the pie, seeing how they saw a drop in revenue and the television market is on the rise. The HDTV industry is growing nowadays and IMAX already started planning for a transition by selling smaller versions of its screens to consumers in China. Sources claim that IMAX is considering selling its technology to Americans as well.
This means that if we’re lucky, by 2020 we’ll be able to enjoy the finale of Game of Thrones on our own IMAX home theatre. It’s very possible that around that time George R.R. Martin will also finally release Winds of Winter.
3. Sundance is slowly turning into a festival of VOD releases and TV shows
Before the digital era, the process of making a movie required a lot more money and craftsmanship. Times have changed however, and nowadays pretty much anyone with a decent camera and a good idea can come up with something that can be bought on the VOD market.
This year the studio box office suffered a drop but indie films prospered thanks to alternative solutions such as Netflix and iTunes. The entries from the Sundance festival are no longer concerned about distribution as most of those movies will receive a VOD release. As a matter of fact, Sundance even started to accept television pilots such as the Animals animated series.
4. Movies are getting censored while TV shows are not
Not too long ago we were bombarded with tons of R-rated zombie movies. However, nowadays, the PG-13 has turned great R-rated movies like Die Hard into censored TV movies. John McClane has been forced to censor his curse words while TV shows can pretty much get away with anything.
So while television is slowly moving to an age where decapitations and sex are something normal, movies such as Fifty Shades of Grey are way too frightened to show male nudity on screen.
5. Television is attracting artists and movies are becoming episodic
Colin Farrell, Dustin Hoffman, Halle Berry, Kevin Bacon and Jodie Foster are just a few of a larger list of actors who are moving on to television, a medium that was at a time considered inferior. Most nominees at the Oscars have had great roles in television in the past.
Big-budget movie franchises are actually becoming similar to television series in terms of commitment. Actors like Robert Downey Jr. and Johnny Depp have actually spent more time filming for movie franchises than how much time Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson spent working on True Detective. To be fair, this is just an isolated example, but you get the point.
There are also a lot of great directors that move to television. Guillermo del Toro, David Fincher, Martin Scorsese and Steven Soderbergh are just some of the directors who started making TV shows.
So there you have it, this was our list of 5 ways in which TV shows are becoming movies.
Images source: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6
