From ‘Batgirl’ to ‘Spiderwick’: Hollywood’s Unpredictable Hits and Misses

The situation in the film industry in Hollywood has not changed, as finding the right course is still as difficult as before. William Goldman’s famous label, “Nobody knows anything,” although it may sound harsh, it is, nevertheless, true-to-life as it describes the consistent uncertainty about what will work. At this very moment, Disney+ made a decision of taking out “The Spiderwick Chronicles” from their catalog as a one-off measure meant to slash costs. While Netflix declined the offer, Roku identified the market gap and decided to release the first eight-episode season this week.

This is not the first time projects have been abandoned or changed between gaming platforms. Parallels with unreleased films include never released “Batgirl” and “Coyote vs. Acme,” the production company which even the tax laws made to write off all of the productions impossible in exchange for bringing them out. These decisions underline the complexities of modern content strategy, where not even fan-favorite franchises like Marvel are immune to scrutiny over their profitability.

The transition from streaming and COVID-19, has significantly disrupted the economic landscape, and now more than ever studios have a lot at stake. Roku adopting the Spiderwick Chronicles could have been a calculated move to attract an audience with a well-known storyline which didn’t mesh with the plans of Disney+.

The existing situation suggests that the truth of Goldman’s old observation still stands valid, and that it is no less a gamble than it was before in forecasting hits. Although the history of entertainment has shown plenty of cases of unforeseen successes and poor performances, from the over-budget worries of ‘Titanic’ to the hesitant beginning of ‘Seinfeld’, which only got its chance when an NBC executive had to give his spare money to support first episodes.

The ability of Roku to release “The Spiderwick Chronicles” highlights the dynamic nature and uncertainty of content success in the digital media age. Maybe it has information that Disney doesn’t or it might be timing to go against something which is not related to their wider range of services. Meanwhile, these types of productions demonstrate that the entertainment industry is an ever-changing environment, where quality content but on the right platform can still reach its audience.