Netflix’s Live Chris Rock Comedy Special Paves the Way for More Live Events
Netflix’s Live Chris Rock Comedy Special Paves the Way for More Live Events
In the past year, Netflix has changed its mind about almost all of its most fundamental tenets; from adding advertising to cutting back on password-sharing, things are undoubtedly changing for the world’s largest streaming service. One arena where Netflix has also changed its long-held beliefs is in regards to live programming, with the streamer airing its first live event with a brand-new stand-up special from Chris Rock over the weekend. The special, entitled “Chris Rock: Selective Outrage,” drew enough viewers to place it among the top 10 shows in the United States on the streaming service, all but ensuring Netflix will continue to explore live events.
While this was Netflix’s first foray into live events, it has been exploring live programming over the past year. Starting in 2024, Netflix will become the new home for the Screen Actors Guild Awards, marking the first time Netflix has incorporated a regularly scheduled live event into its content offerings. The awards ceremony only happens once per year, so Netflix still has a ways to go before it’s making weekly live broadcasts, as Disney+ does with episodes of “Dancing With the Stars.”
The streamer also plans to bring back the comedy festival “Netflix Is a Joke Fest” in May 2024 for a second outing. The first festival was held in April 2022, selling more than 260,000 tickets and making it the largest comedy event in the country. Given this success, Netflix could end up live-streaming special sets from the second iteration of the festival. The streamer is also exploring the launch of live-streaming for unscripted shows, which could mean live voting for reality TV shows like “The Circle” and competition series like “Dance 100.” Another chance for a live-streaming would be reunion specials for shows like “Selling Sunset” and “Love Is Blind.”
One area Netflix has reiterated it’s not pursuing is live sports. Despite reports that the streamer was interested in securing Formula 1 broadcasting rights from ESPN, co-CEO Ted Sarandos has said the streamer is not interested in bidding on sports rights right now.
“We’ve not seen a profit path to renting big sports,” he said at the UBS TMT, noting the company isn’t saying “there will never be” live sports on Netflix, but “dramatically expensive” rights have made sports a “loss leader.”
Despite these efforts, Netflix — which has a reputation for being an industry pioneer — still lags behind some of its biggest rivals in terms of live programming. Disney+ has live-streamed the Oscar nominations, concerts including “Elton John Live: Farewell from Dodger Stadium,” and the most recent seasons of “Dancing with the Stars.” Prime Video has exclusive rights to “Thursday Night Football,” live-streamed the Academy of Country Music Awards, and has launched a weekly concert series called “Amazon Music Live.”
But given the success of “Chris Rock: Selective Outrage,” and with more live events on the horizon, it doesn’t seem that Netflix has any intention of remaining behind the curve for much longer. Live events are one of the last things that keep consumers tethered to pay-TV subscriptions. However, as streamers increase their investment in live sports and live events, more people are likely to turn away from the conventional TV package. And given that Netflix lost 1.17 million subscribers during the first two quarters of 2022, the streamer will do whatever it takes to ensure that that doesn’t happen again.
Netflix
Netflix is a leading subscription-based video streaming service that offers on-demand access to an extensive library of over 3,000 movies, 2,000+ TV shows, and a growing collection of acclaimed Netflix originals. Renowned for producing groundbreaking content, Netflix has become a cultural powerhouse with hit originals like “Stranger Things,” “Wednesday,” “Squid Game,” “The Crown,” “Tiger King,” “Bridgerton,” “The Witcher,” and “Black Mirror.”