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Over the last decade, the television landscape has undergone a seismic shift, leading many to herald it as a golden age, particularly for scripted TV series. This transformation has been fueled largely by the rise of streaming services, a change in media consumption habits, and a discernible shift in the prestige associated with television roles. Previously, TV was often seen as a lesser medium compared to film, a perspective that has dramatically changed. The past ten years have not only seen an explosion in the quantity and quality of TV productions but also a fundamental reshaping of audience expectations and industry standards.
Historically, TV suffered from a kind of cultural snobbery, with the term “TV actor” used pejoratively to denote someone unable to succeed in the more esteemed realm of film acting. However, this view has reversed thanks to high-profile, critically acclaimed series like HBO’s “Game of Thrones” and Netflix’s “Stranger Things,” which have attracted big Hollywood names to the small screen. These series have enjoyed a level of attention and critical acclaim that rivals, and sometimes exceeds, that of major Hollywood blockbusters. This shift is not just about the changing landscape of celebrity and performance but also about the industry’s evolving business models, as streaming giants like Netflix, Amazon, and Apple invest heavily in original content to capture audiences worldwide.
The surge in original scripted content has been impressive, with the number of series aired in the U.S. rising from 216 in 2010 to a peak of 600 by 2022, according to FX Networks Research. This period, often referred to as “peak TV,” has been characterized by an unprecedented breadth of storytelling and production quality. However, the landscape began to shift in recent years, with the number of series declining 14 percent to 516 last year, signaling possibly an end to this unprecedented era of TV production. This decline has been attributed to several factors, including the Hollywood writers’ strike and a growing emphasis on profitability over growth. FX chairman John Landgraf’s prediction in 2022 that the peak TV era was reaching its zenith seems prescient, as the industry sees a reduction in new players and a focus on sustainable models of content creation, pointing to a significant transformation in how we define and engage with what might be called the golden age of TV.
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