Viewers were heartbroken when ABC canceled the perpetually low-rated Marvel series Agent Carter earlier this year, but held out hope that a streaming service like Netflix would rescue the show. Unfortunately for diehard fans, Netflix passed on the opportunity, and now, the company is explaining why.
Entertainment Weekly caught up with Netflix chief content officer Ted Sarandos recently and asked the exec for an explanation, and it turns out that it’s pretty simple: The streaming service has already devoted a lot of programming resources to Marvel properties — including all of its Defenders series like Daredevil, Jessica Jones, and the upcoming Luke Cage and Iron Fist — and simply wanted to save some space to branch out into different types of stories in the future. “We’re looking for truly original brands to own,” Sarandos explained to EW.
It was also a bit tricky trying to negotiate terms with the Agent Carter crew, since it was an existing series with different contracts and licensing deals than shows owned outright by Netflix. Figuring out how to obtain streaming rights while honoring the show’s existing global distribution rights was ultimately too difficult for the service. “Unfortunately, it was a business decision more than a creative one,” Sarandos told EW.
That’s too bad, especially considering how eager Atwell was to resurrect the show in any way possible. But the actress is already committed to a new ABC series (Conviction, slated to debut this fall), and was pretty unhappy with Marvel for how it handled the much-maligned Captain America-Sharon Carter romance in Civil War, so maybe it’s best for everyone involved that they all move on. Fans can take solace in the fact that at least the show went out on a high note.
(Via: Entertainment Weekly)