In the streaming era, it may seem that all things are available at any time. Like the story of the film and television, in its infinity, is at our disposal with a few clicks of a button. It is often overwhelming. Nor is it true at a distance. Not only are many classics not available on a streaming service or to rent through digital retailers, but even recent programs that have been made for this time have disappeared. “The Premises” by BJ Novak is an example.
Novak, who will recognize him most like Ryan of “The Office”, is much more than a simple actor. He is also a writer, producer and director who put several hats in 2021 when he made “the premise” for FX. The Anthology series consists of five episodes, each covering a different modern problem. The official synopsis of the show can be read as follows:
“‘The premises’ is an anthology of a daring and provocative half hour of autonomous stories about the times we live. The organized collection of episodes focused on the characters calls into question our shared moral stories, the choice of art rather than the argument, because it engages with the most relevant and significant problems of the modern era.”
“The Premises” was broadcast on FX and also broadcast on Hulu in the fall of 2021. The program addressed subjects such as firearms, identity, social justice, sex, capitalism, revenge, love, fame, social media and even buttocks. Unfortunately, if all this seems interesting to you, it is almost impossible to look now. When writing these lines, the series is not available to broadcast on any major service, and it is not available to rent via VOD. It is almost as if he had never existed. It is all the more surprising that you look at the talent involved in the show. However, it is not at all rare in the changing media climate today.
The premise was (and is still) victim of the streaming wars
When the Pandemic COVID-19 arrived in 2020, Hollywood has doubled in a large part. Netflix had already cemented streaming as the future, but the pandemic accelerated everything. Unfortunately, after a few years of rapid spending and expansion, Hollywood in general had a moment of Jesus. In 2023, Disney began to make Disney + and Hulu films en masse. Other streamers like HBO Max have followed suit.
Many of these programs and films have been produced exclusively for streaming, which means that they did not have a Blu-ray or DVD version to speak (which only served to highlight the importance of physical media at the age of streaming). As for what all this? All of this was done in order to reduce costs. Even if streaming royalties are a fraction of what traditional television paid, it always costs money to have a program or film on a platform. Thus, the removal of the series like “The Premises” which did not get much audience has become an economy measure.
This show is a brilliant example of the traps of the streaming era. It boasts A Stellar Cast that included The Likes of Lucas Hedges (“Lady Bird”), Kaitlyn Dever (“The Last of Us”), Jon Bernthal (“The Punisher”), Tracee Ellis Ross (“Black-Ish”), Daniel Dae Kim (“Hawaii Five-0”), O’Shea Jackson Jr. (“Den of Thieves 2: Pantera”), Ayo Edebiri (“The Bear”) and Boyd Holbrook (“Logan”), to name just a few. However, Disney could not justify keeping it on Hulu.
It remains confusing that Disney did not make “The Premises” available for rental on VOD via windows such as Amazon Prime Video or Apple TV, but it is far from being the only program or film that has arrived. “Willow”, which was canceled after a season, is not available on Disney + and has no physical version to speak.
While companies are starting to further rationalize streaming strategies, with an increasing number of titles coming in Blu-ray / DVD, others have managed to pass through the meshes of the net. It is only such a victim of streaming wars.
