Ron Howard's Imagine jumps ship from Apple TV+ to Amazon

AppleInsiderAppleInsider
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Ron Howard and Brian Grazer's Imagine Entertainment has switched a first-look deal from Apple TV+ to Amazon Studios.

Brian Grazer and Ron Howard
Brian Grazer and Ron Howard


Imagine's co-founders Brian Grazer and Ron Howard signed a multi-year deal with Apple in 2021 to produce films for Apple TV+. Apple had also signed a first-look deal that would allow the company to pick up a project before its competitors.

However, Imagine has switched the first-look deal over to Amazon Studios, where it has an action-comedy project in development, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

"Brian, Ron, and I, along with our entire team at Imagine, including Karen Lunder, President of Imagine Features, and Sara Bernstein, President of Imagine Documentaries, couldn't be more excited to have a home at Amazon and continue our shared desire to make tentpole films that inspire, elevate, and entertain audiences," Justin Wilkes, President of Imagine Entertainment, said.

With Amazon as Imagine's new partner, it will give the company first looks at narrative films and documentaries that Imagine plans to produce. The two had previously collaborated on other content, including "Lucy and Desi," "Thirteen Lives," and "Judy Blume Forever."

Imagine had produced content for Apple TV+ such as "Black & Blues: The Colorful Ballad of Louis Armstrong," a documentary about Louis Armstrong.

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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 22
    iOS_Guy80iOS_Guy80 Posts: 911member
    Their loss and mistake.
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 2 of 22
    9secondkox29secondkox2 Posts: 3,196member
    Well that sucks. 

    Sounds like a good one from a known great quantity. 

    Don’t like backing out of a deal. Wonder how that works. 
    edited March 2023 watto_cobra
  • Reply 3 of 22
    ronnronn Posts: 691member
    Not surprised given Amazon's broader push into movies: buying MGM, bigger spend on cinema the last few years, and now reports of them moving into actual theatre ownership. They already highlighted plans to release 12-15 movies in theatres annually. Directors & Producers love that kind of thinking.
    byronl
  • Reply 4 of 22
    JinTechJinTech Posts: 1,075member
    ronn said:
    Not surprised given Amazon's broader push into movies: buying MGM, bigger spend on cinema the last few years, and now reports of them moving into actual theatre ownership. They already highlighted plans to release 12-15 movies in theatres annually. Directors & Producers love that kind of thinking.
    I can't wait to buy an Amazon Kindle the next time I am in a movie theatre! /s In all honesty, I am sure they will have a kiosk for Amazon products if they buy out a movie theatre company!
    byronlwatto_cobra
  • Reply 5 of 22
    chasmchasm Posts: 3,646member
    Somebody should tell Mr. Grazer that "styling your hair" does not translate to "give this Van Der Graff generator a big wet kiss." :lol: 

    I'm sure he and Ron will do well at Amazon, and hopefully have other opportunities outside this deal to work with Apple on other projects. The Louis Armstrong doc was great.
    davenwatto_cobrateejay2012
  • Reply 6 of 22
    22july201322july2013 Posts: 3,745member
    9secondkox2 said:
    Don’t like backing out of a deal. Wonder how that works. 
    Most big deals have "escape clauses" that allow one party to exit the deal. Usually there is a penalty, and it's usually financial. It's possible that Amazon even agreed to pay the entire penalty in this case. I recall reading that Microsoft has an escape clause if it decides it doesn't want to go through with the deal to purchase Activision Blizzard in a couple of months. I think I remember that the fee to escape the deal is $4 billion. Yes, that's billion, not million.

    Maybe the escape clause in the contract between Imagine and Apple wasn't too expensive. Possibly $4 million. Yes, that's million, not billion.
    ronnbyronl
  • Reply 7 of 22
    dewmedewme Posts: 5,807member
    Opie has gone to the dark side. 
  • Reply 8 of 22
    chutzpahchutzpah Posts: 392member

    Don’t like backing out of a deal. Wonder how that works. 
    A "multi-year deal... in 2021" could conceivably have been a two year deal that just expired.  If the first look deal started in 2019 and was extended in 2021 then it may be that Apple are working on two year schedules.
    ronnbyronl
  • Reply 9 of 22
    darkvaderdarkvader Posts: 1,146member
    iOS_Guy80 said:
    Their loss and mistake.
    Hardly.  Amazon Prime is worth it for the shipping, Prime Video is essentially a freebie that they throw in.  And it's still got a lot more content than Apple, and it's generally better content.

    I'm gonna bet there are a LOT more people with Amazon Prime than with Apple TV+, and it's probably going to stay that way.

    Apple's big thing is apparently some show about a sportsball coach.  Yawn.
    ronnneoncatmuthuk_vanalingam
  • Reply 10 of 22
    foregoneconclusionforegoneconclusion Posts: 2,864member
    darkvader said:
    iOS_Guy80 said:
    Their loss and mistake.
    Hardly.  Amazon Prime is worth it for the shipping, Prime Video is essentially a freebie that they throw in.  
    Prime shipping isn't anything special these days relative to what other companies offer. Plus, Amazon has a sh*t ton of products that will never deliver in two days now regardless of whether you have Prime or not. 
    davenRudeBoyRudywatto_cobra
  • Reply 11 of 22
    gatorguygatorguy Posts: 24,672member
    foregoneconclusion said:
    darkvader said:
    iOS_Guy80 said:
    Their loss and mistake.
    Hardly.  Amazon Prime is worth it for the shipping, Prime Video is essentially a freebie that they throw in.  
    Prime shipping isn't anything special these days relative to what other companies offer. Plus, Amazon has a sh*t ton of products that will never deliver in two days now regardless of whether you have Prime or not. 
    Personally, I have excellent service from Amazon. As often as not an Amazon-sourced product I order today will deliver tomorrow, even on Sunday.  Yeah, some products aren't in Amazon warehouses and shipped by the vendor, but they're upfront about it and generally pretty accurate on when you'll receive it. 

    Anyway, you can't argue that at the moment Amazon is by far the bigger player in visual media, so if high-profile and wide availability is the goal then Amazon is the better choice. Apple is still developing its portfolio. Give 'em a few years and if the commitment is still there I expect them to be much more competitive.  
    ronnmuthuk_vanalingam
  • Reply 12 of 22
    SpitbathSpitbath Posts: 97member
    darkvader said:
    iOS_Guy80 said:
    Their loss and mistake.
    Hardly.  Amazon Prime is worth it for the shipping, Prime Video is essentially a freebie that they throw in.  And it's still got a lot more content than Apple, and it's generally better content.

    I'm gonna bet there are a LOT more people with Amazon Prime than with Apple TV+, and it's probably going to stay that way.

    Apple's big thing is apparently some show about a sportsball coach.  Yawn.
    I'm gonna bet that if Prime Video wasn't included free with Prime the subscriber numbers would be very similar to tv+. Yes, Prime has a lot more content but how much of that is original content and how does that amount compare to Apple original content? I've watched maybe a handful of Amazon originals which works out to maybe one show a year. I would almost certainly cancel my membership for the rest of the year if it weren't for the Prime benefits.
    badmonkteejay2012
  • Reply 13 of 22
    chutzpahchutzpah Posts: 392member
    darkvader said:
    iOS_Guy80 said:
    Their loss and mistake.
    Hardly.  Amazon Prime is worth it for the shipping, Prime Video is essentially a freebie that they throw in.  And it's still got a lot more content than Apple, and it's generally better content.
    Pretty dumb of Amazon to spend all that money on all that content for something that their customers only consider to be a freebie.
  • Reply 14 of 22
    gatorguygatorguy Posts: 24,672member
    Spitbath said:
    darkvader said:
    iOS_Guy80 said:
    Their loss and mistake.
    Hardly.  Amazon Prime is worth it for the shipping, Prime Video is essentially a freebie that they throw in.  And it's still got a lot more content than Apple, and it's generally better content.

    I'm gonna bet there are a LOT more people with Amazon Prime than with Apple TV+, and it's probably going to stay that way.

    Apple's big thing is apparently some show about a sportsball coach.  Yawn.
    I'm gonna bet that if Prime Video wasn't included free with Prime the subscriber numbers would be very similar to tv+. Yes, Prime has a lot more content but how much of that is original content and how does that amount compare to Apple original content? 
    This is Amazon's original and exclusive movies and series. Just a quick glance but it looks like far more than Apple currently has. https://www.amazon.com/s?rh=n:16048854011&language=en_US&brr=1&rd=1

    I've really enjoyed Jack Reacher, the Boys, Jack Ryan, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, and Hand of God, but everyone has their own tastes. 
    edited April 2023 ronn
  • Reply 15 of 22
    neoncatneoncat Posts: 168member
    "I've really enjoyed Jack Reacher, the Boys, Jack Ryan, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, and Hand of God, but everyone has their own tastes."

    I'm a huge fan of The Grand Tour and the various solo projects of the three principals (Clarkson's Farm, Oh Cook!, etc.) And I can't remember the last time I waited two days for anything from Amazon. I get most things same-day or, at worst, 24 hours. Helps to live in a large metro area. Prime delivers value to me, although we'll see if I feel that way if they keep raising the price.

    Meanwhile, the only AppleTV+ show I've been able to stomach past 2 or 3 episodes is Ted Lasso. I made it through the first season then lost interest. Apple's shows are all so milquetoast and sterile. It's like listening to that ridiculous Apple Radio One or whatever they're calling it these days. So over-polished so as to lose any sort of sense of organic appeal. But yes, absolutely: To each their own, and no disrespect to anyone else's preferences. I just can't imagine paying for AppleTV+. Zero value to me.
    ronn
  • Reply 16 of 22
    uraharaurahara Posts: 733member
    chutzpah said:
    darkvader said:
    iOS_Guy80 said:
    Their loss and mistake.
    Hardly.  Amazon Prime is worth it for the shipping, Prime Video is essentially a freebie that they throw in.  And it's still got a lot more content than Apple, and it's generally better content.
    Pretty dumb of Amazon to spend all that money on all that content for something that their customers only consider to be a freebie.
    Yeah. They will be surely out of business in 6-9 months. So dumb. 
  • Reply 17 of 22
    gatorguygatorguy Posts: 24,672member
    chutzpah said:
    darkvader said:
    iOS_Guy80 said:
    Their loss and mistake.
    Hardly.  Amazon Prime is worth it for the shipping, Prime Video is essentially a freebie that they throw in.  And it's still got a lot more content than Apple, and it's generally better content.
    Pretty dumb of Amazon to spend all that money on all that content for something that their customers only consider to be a freebie.
    Apple TV+ is all but free. Heck, I haven't paid for it in almost a year of use, because Apple made a deal with T-Mo to give it away free, I'm sure hoping that a good percentage of those freebies will turn into paying subscribers at the end of it.  And TMo is not the only one giving it away. I would not be surprised that individual paying subscribers is half the user base or less.  But that freebie TMo I'm enjoying gets a good subscriber count

    Apple is spending $Billions on hope and prayer that it pays off.  Amazon does the same, but with a longer history of committed investment.  
  • Reply 18 of 22
    davidmalcolmdavidmalcolm Posts: 405member
    darkvader said:
    iOS_Guy80 said:
    Their loss and mistake.
    Hardly.  Amazon Prime is worth it for the shipping, Prime Video is essentially a freebie that they throw in.  And it's still got a lot more content than Apple, and it's generally better content.

    I'm gonna bet there are a LOT more people with Amazon Prime than with Apple TV+, and it's probably going to stay that way.

    Apple's big thing is apparently some show about a sportsball coach.  Yawn.
    Better content than Apple TV+? Hardly. The Lord of the Rings show was pretty even though the writing was pretty middling. Upload was genuinely good. Jack Ryan is good. Marvellous Ms Maisel was good for the episodes I watched. And they’ve had a few others that I enjoyed. But they have NOTHING as good as Ted Lasso, Shrinking or Severance. Foundation is certainly better than the seasons of the Expanse that Amazon funded. 

    Don’t get me wrong, Prime Video has some good shows but they’re no where near Apple’s level. 
    Spitbathwatto_cobra
  • Reply 19 of 22
    KillBillOGKillBillOG Posts: 32member
    JinTech said:
    I can't wait to buy an Amazon Kindle the next time I am in a movie theatre! /s In all honesty, I am sure they will have a kiosk for Amazon products if they buy out a movie theatre company!
    I'll waste no time to run down to a WholePaycheck and see where quality items are on the shelf, maybe they'll have a big red box for picking up dated content as well. 
  • Reply 20 of 22
    RudeBoyRudyRudeBoyRudy Posts: 106member
    darkvader said:

    Apple's big thing is apparently some show about a sportsball coach.  Yawn.


    This comment = eye roll


    watto_cobra
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