The show that gets viewers hooked – House of Cards game-changing Netflix celebrates its 10th birthday
It’s begging for trust – but the hit Netflix monster House of Cards will mark its 10th anniversary tomorrow.
Prized for its realistic depiction of the inner workings of the upper echelons of US politics, its gripping storylines feel as relevant today as they did a decade ago.
With the embarrassing circumstances that saw Frank Underwood’s insidious character slip off the stage when Kevin Spacey was hit with a number of sexual assault allegations in 2017, it’s easy to underestimate the impact. its at that time.
The two-time Oscar winner was eventually dropped from the sixth and final installment as the producers turned their attention to his scheming wife Claire, played by Robin Wright.
But the show completely changed the fortunes of Netflix, a company that relies heavily on DVD rentals and other studios’ content.
Its largest and most expensive production at the time, Dealer made headlines after it was revealed that the streaming giant had paid at least 100 million euros for two seasons with 13 episodes each.
This was virtually unheard of in 2013 when the streaming giants were in their infancy and Netflix was funded entirely by subscriptions and didn’t rely on traditional ad revenue. It also spawned the first series to give rise to the “go-go binge-watching” phenomenon where people no longer had to wait a whole week to see a sequel to their favorite show.
In a culture that demands instant gratification, this is also a huge cultural shift in how viewers perceive their visual content.
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Michael Kelly, Robin Wright and Kevin Spacey at the 2017 Tony Awards at Radio City Music Hall in New York City. Photo: Kevin Mazur/Getty Images
The fact that it’s all ad-free has greatly boosted its appeal to impatient viewers.
Remarkably, Spacey as president of the United States broke through the “fourth wall” by speaking directly to the camera in a way that made the audience feel as if they knew all of his insidious plots.
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Proof of its success came in July 2013 when it broke the mold by winning nine nominations for the 65th Primetime Emmy Awards, making history as the first “online show”. first received recognition from a reputable agency.
On that night, Spacey hailed it as a “new paradigm for the industry”.
“It shows that the Academy has a modern, progressive touch,” he said.
“There will be more companies coming forward to do this kind of work, so more shows will be produced, more actors will be hired, more work will be done.”
Spacey was nominated that year along with co-star Wright but in the end, director David Hinchman was the only one to win the award.
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The cast of House Of Cards, minus the departed Kevin Spacey, attended the season six world premiere in 2018 in Los Angeles. Photo: Rachel Murray/Getty Images for Netflix
In all, over the course of its six seasons, the show earned 33 Primetime Emmy nominations as critics took to the antics of the Underwoods and, of course, Doug Stamper, played by Michael Kelly.
Near the end, Spacey – who hasn’t entered the acting scene since he first surfaced several sexual assault allegations in 2017 – is paid around 500,000 euros per episode, while his co-star Wright earns. about 430,000 euros.
Where Netflix leads, others logically follow in the form of Hulu, Hayu, Amazon, Apple TV, and Disney+. The success of Dealer also created other original Netflix shows like Orange is the new black, Crown and of course, Strange things.
Pour a lot of revenue in Dealer was a big risk — and it paid off well for the streaming giant. Before its premiere in February 2013, Netflix had 33 million subscribers and was valued at 5.7 billion euros.
As of the fourth quarter of last year, the streaming service had 231 million subscriptions and is now estimated to be worth around €160 billion.
https://www.independent.ie/entertainment/television/the-show-that-spawned-binge-watching-netflix-game-changer-house-of-cards-celebrates-its-10th-birthday-42320026.html The show that gets viewers hooked – House of Cards game-changing Netflix celebrates its 10th birthday