Not a dream, not an imaginary story, folks.

Like sands through the hourglass, another iconic TV title is switching to streaming: NBC’s Days of our Lives will become a Peacock exclusive starting September 12, Vulture has learned. The move will end the show’s 57-year run on broadcast television and also marks the exit of NBC from a genre it pioneered 73 years ago with the launch in 1949 of These Are My Children, widely credited as TV’s first-ever daytime sudser. It comes as two other major broadcast titles — Thursday Night Football and ABC’s Dancing with the Stars — prepare to shift to streaming this fall.

In the case of Days, there has been industry speculation about it jumping to Peacock for some time now. The series, produced by Corday Prods. in association with Sony Pictures Television, has dodged cancellation multiple times over the past 15 years, with Sony and NBC often engaged in very last-minute negotiations to hammer out deals which make financial sense to both parties. Days has been the least-watched of the four remaining network daytime dramas for years now, making it increasingly difficult for NBC execs to justify keeping the show around absent reduced license fees (which Sony has largely been able to deliver).

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“This programming shift benefits both Peacock and NBC and is reflective of our broader strategy to utilize our portfolio to maximize reach and strengthen engagement with viewers,” Mark Lazarus, chairman, NBCUniversal Television and Streaming said of the decision. “With a large percentage of the Days of Our Lives audience already watching digitally, this move enables us to build the show’s loyal fanbase on streaming while simultaneously bolstering the network daytime offering with an urgent, live programming opportunity for partners and consumers.” NBC will fill the gap left by Days with a new one-hour news program, NBC News Daily, anchored by Kate Snow, Aaron Gilchrist, Vicky Nguyen and Morgan Radford.

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Full article in Twitter link.

 

2 minutes ago, AbcNbc247 said:

If I'm home, I'll watch it live, but most days I catch it on my DVR.

4 minutes ago, Errol said:

I mostly watch the shows online through streaming websites or apps on TV/phone.

So, it seems like although the news is shocking, the experience of how we consume the show wouldn't change that much, and it makes it easier to "second screen", so that people can post and chat as they watch.

 

AFTER 14,830 WEEKDAYS ON NBC'S DAYTIME SCHEDULE, "DAYS" TO WRAP NBC RUN WITH 14,417 EPISODES...

 

"Days of Our Lives" will wrap its historic run on NBC having aired 14,417 episodes (plus 2 repeats) and having been preempted 411 times over the course of 2,966 weeks on NBC's daytime schedule. "Days" airs it last episode on NBC on Friday, September 9 before moving to Peacock on Monday, September 12.

Edited August 4, 20223 yr by JAS0N47

Just now, j swift said:

So, it seems like although the news is shocking, the experience of how we consume the show wouldn't change that much, and it makes it easier to "second screen", so that people can post and chat as they watch.

Depends on what time Peacock posts the episodes. The smart thing to do would be to post them at like 12 or 1 in the afternoon

14 minutes ago, Gray Bunny said:

Tina Fey…? 

She would be my dream pick, but even she would admit it’s a tough job and Lorne protected the show in a way that just won’t be possible anymore.

 

  

Side note: if our dreams came true and they uploaded the entire 57 year catalog of the series to stream, I wonder which eras/decades would have the most hits. I know I wouldn’t be interested in anything past 2002 aside from some hate-watching of the serial killer story of ‘03/04. I’d be all about the 80’s and 90’s. 

11 minutes ago, DRW50 said:

The show has been under strict network  control before (especially in the mid-late '90s) and it benefited them in some ways as Lorne has a lot of bad habits. There are plenty who  could replace him, including some who now work there under him. The show, if it stays on, is likely going to face big budget cuts either way, but that doesn't have to be a bad thing. 

With that said, this DAYS news makes that seem less likely...

I know he has had to justify the musical guests during almost every season budget renewal, and also he has protected the show airing the way it does- live, with the cold open, weekend update as a centerpiece, musical guests, etc.  Also the way the show is run- from the writer’s night to final show, three weeks and a break.  So while I think the show would continue without him, minus the budgets and more network interference, I just don’t think we get a better show out of the tinkering.

My apologies for hijacking this thread with SNL talk- I’m as obsessed with the bts of SNL as I am with with soaps.

Just now, titan1978 said:

I know he has had to justify the musical guests during almost every season budget renewal, and also he has protected the show airing the way it does- live, with the cold open, weekend update as a centerpiece, musical guests, etc.  Also the way the show is run- from the writer’s night to final show, three weeks and a break.  So while I think the show would continue without him, minus the budgets and more network interference, I just don’t think we get a better show out of the tinkering.

My apologies for hijacking this thread with SNL talk- I’m as obsessed with the bts of SNL as I am with with soaps.

No worries  I’m the one who originally brought it up. My last comment on it - in this day and age of YouTube and viral clips, I absolutely think SNL could and should continue, with the right person(s) at the helm. 

3 minutes ago, Gray Bunny said:

I’d be all about the 80’s and 90’s. 

That's what would probably have the most hits: 82-87 and probably like 93-99

1 minute ago, titan1978 said:

I know he has had to justify the musical guests during almost every season budget renewal, and also he has protected the show airing the way it does- live, with the cold open, weekend update as a centerpiece, musical guests, etc.  Also the way the show is run- from the writer’s night to final show, three weeks and a break.  So while I think the show would continue without him, minus the budgets and more network interference, I just don’t think we get a better show out of the tinkering.

My apologies for hijacking this thread with SNL talk- I’m as obsessed with the bts of SNL as I am with with soaps.

I would miss the 90 minute format, but many other changes (like not needing Update every week or just having one musical performance a week, or even changing up the  writing schedule) I  really wouldn't be as sorry to see, to be honest...although whether we'd get another show, who knows.

As you said, this is better suited for the SNL thread.

7 minutes ago, victoria foxton said:

 

  

Passions move to streaming years ago and began with 3 eppies/week, then 2.  Eventually, eppies just didn't air consistently until we were told it was canceled.  Direct TV gained many new accounts but the show didn't last very long after the move.  

28 minutes ago, j swift said:

I'd be interested to know from those on this board how many watch it live with commercials versus watching it on cable streaming or DVR?

There seems to be a dedicated few that watch it live daily and then post here.

However, I've not watched a soap live since the Reagan administration (since we're also admitting our age).

So, except for the fee, it seems like the same viewing experience to me whether it is streamed on nbc.com or Peacock.  And I'd rather pay $5-$15 for a couple of streaming services then $95 for a whole cable package with a with a bunch of sports that I don't watch.

Considering how bad Days has been I watch it on DVR that way I can fast forward what characters/stories I don't like and I can fast forward the commercials. Seeing Days live would be a big chore in its current state.

Edited August 4, 20223 yr by Soapsuds

24 minutes ago, AbcNbc247 said:

Depends on what time Peacock posts the episodes. The smart thing to do would be to post them at like 12 or 1 in the afternoon

One assumes they'll post early every morning like Beyond Salem, although the UK soaps recently experimented with posting the whole week of episodes every Monday

23 minutes ago, victoria foxton said:

 

  

Call me when that guy gets either a digital marketing degree or spell-check.

These are the same types of doomsday predictions that people said when VCRs came to market. 

The truth is that we don't know how people will consume serialized drama as more people cut the cord. Passions and AMC/OLTL were a lifetime ago in the age of streaming and smart tv technology.   And, optimistically, given that streaming sponsorship relies on micro data of the audience, writers and creatives won't be beholden to keep trying to entice 18-35 year old viewers, if an older more dedicated audience continues to watch the show.

Edited August 4, 20223 yr by j swift

 

  

3 minutes ago, j swift said:

The truth is that we don't know how people will consume serialized drama as more people cut the cord. Passions and AMC/OLTL were a lifetime ago in the age of streaming and smart tv technology.   And, optimistically, given that streaming sponsorship relies on micro data of the audience, writers and creatives won't be beholden to keep trying to entice 18-35 year old viewers, if an older more dedicated audience continues to watch the show.

The problem is most of the older viewers who would use a streaming service are probably not who would be sitting through a soap, especially not one that is as poor as DAYS has been in recent years. I hope they make it work but this feels like a death sentence to me.