Beyond the Gates: Premiere Date, Time Slot Set by CBS

[Liberty City]

Exactly! Plus, Disney-ABC has the Onyx Collective, which per Disney-ABC's press release, states:

❝ Onyx Collective is a premium content brand under Disney Entertainment Television, with programming exclusively available to stream on Hulu in the U.S., Star+ in Latin America and Disney+ in all other territories. Onyx Collective curates globally entertaining stories by creators of color and underrepresented voices, all with a culturally specific point of view, including Oscar®-winning documentary “Summer of Soul (…Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised),” “Reasonable Doubt,” Emmy® Award-nominated and Peabody Award-winning documentary film “Aftershock,” Emmy Award-winning docuseries “The 1619 Project,” “Black Twitter: A People’s History,” “Deli Boys,” “Drive with Swizz Beatz,” “How to Die Alone,” “Queenie,” “Ring of Fire: The Life of Annie Mae Aquash,” “UnPrisoned” and “Untitled Sly Stone” (working title).

The brand’s roster of prolific creators also includes Ryan Coogler’s Proximity Media (“Black Panther,” “Judas and the Black Messiah”); Manolo Caro (“The House of Flowers”) and Woo Films;  Destin Daniel Cretton (“Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings”) and his production company Hisako; Jason Kim (“Barry,” “KPOP”); Academy Award®-winning filmmaker Joseph Patel (“Summer of Soul (…Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised)”); Prentice Penny’s Penny for Your Thoughts; Natasha Rothwell (“Insecure,” “SNL”); Yara Shahidi with her 7th Sun Production Company; and Erika Green Swafford and her production company, Chocolate Girl Wonder. ❞

[Manny]

I am just still surprised that they would even consider this, at this day and age, where the remaining 3 soaps are still on a downward trend with their numbers. So the online viewing figures on these different platforms must be doing well enough for them to believe soaps are still quite profitable (obviously they are, otherwise they would cancel them, but it is one thing to keep these existing ones, and completely another thing to invest in a brand new one). 

[Faulkner]

Black viewers have been among the most loyal to these legacy TV networks, even when we rarely see our faces on screen (or seen them treated in the half-ass way that Y&R and B&B do), so it all makes sense.

Negativity creeps in for me when I think of how this has worked out for us in the past. The commitment is never there, and as soon as a shiny object pops up, the black programs are discarded.

It might be different now that the whole industry is facing an existential crisis, but it’s somewhat sad that we had to get here for a soap like this to emerge.

My hope is that they pay their actors and crew competitive wages. I’m curious about how large the canvas will be.

Edited March 7, 2024 by Faulkner

[dragonflies]

It surprises me cause CBS doesn't seem to GAF about how their black characters are written for on YR and BOLD

[BetterForgotten]

Probably because they don’t have ownership in those shows, so change is slower to happen. This is an opportunity for them to do something fresh from the start and jump through less hoops (assuming the collaboration with the NAACP and P&G works out). 

 

[Khan]

Recently, I watched one of those VICE docu-series ("Dark Side of the '90's," I think?) that expressed a similar sentiment: specifically, that African-Americans have always been staunch network TV viewers - as evidenced by the initial success of the FOX network; and later, The WB and UPN - due to habit/tradition and the fact that many African-Americans are from lower-income households who cannot afford cable TV, let alone internet service.

In a way, I think we have Tyler Perry and his ilk to thank for this.  God knows I have been down on that man and his godawful movies, plays and TV shows for YEARS, but as terrible as they are, they prove that there is an audience out there that is hungry for entertainment that speaks to and for them.

At the same time, no one is more HONEST about quality or lack thereof than African-Americans are.  If "The Gates" is crap, we'll let you KNOW it's crap and right away, regardless of track records.  So, if this show actually makes it all the way to production, TPTB better "bring it" or else.

[Taoboi]

I remember those vaguely. Hmmm to think they might have considering it all along.

 

 

[BetterForgotten]

That’s something we also have to be fair about because most, if not all, daytime soaps have had growing pains to work through during their first year on the air. I expect this to be no different - however, they at least have to show that they’re making some effort and that the general premise makes sense and has an intriguing “hook.” Also, they better make sure the casting has very few, if any, missteps. Having charismatic and skilled actors will go a long way in covering up any initial bumps. 

[Vee]

I'm still just wrapping my mind about what this may mean about the genre being revisited and reexamined as viable post-streaming crash, which I suspected might happen but did not know would lead to a new soap. Procter and Gamble. I still can't believe that.

[Gray Bunny]

Wow, never thought I'd see this sort of development happen. So excited for the genre and all the folks potentially involved! 

For creative purposes and ease of keeping up with a new soap in these modern times, I hope it's a half-hour serial, but I understand the economics behind it if it's an hour.  

I felt that recent EW article about Generations and the Vivica A Fox / Jonelle Allen reunion so peculiar, and in the article it mentioned the whisperings of needing a soap like Generations to be revived, and here we are. 

In years past, many of us here talked about how in order for soap operas to survive in this new ever-evolving landscape, we need to cut ties from some of the old dinosaurs (i.e. GL, ATWT) and start fresh, but that always seemed like wishful thinking. It's amazing to see this actually develop. 

In this day and age of live viewers dropping dramatically as delayed viewing and streaming become more of the norm, it's the older demo that still enjoy watching programs live as they air, be it daytime or primetime. From that viewpoint, plus the strike, plus the pandemic, it's incredible to see this renewed energy and dare I say respect that soap operas are being given in the year 2024. 

Can't wait to see how this all continues to develop! 

 

Edited March 7, 2024 by Gray Bunny

[Taoboi]

Well...when you put it out into the Universe...

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[Soaplovers]

Now with streaming and other online platforms, affiliates will have less power in terms of a soap making it or not.

Affiliates in the past caused the declines/endings of numerous soaps:

Edge of Night

Love of Life

Search for tomorrow

Ryan's Hope

Generations

Loving

Port Charles

Those are just off the top of my head.

I also think Days doing well on Peacock has helped a bit with networks being interested in soap development becoming a thing again.

I wonder if it will be a half hour or hour long soap...and I assume filming would be either in Calfornia or even Atlanta perhaps.

 

[BetterForgotten]

It’s remarkable for sure - the network that pioneered soaps as a cornerstone of its daytime lineup with the production company that launched the medium to existence on television. Full circle moment in a way.

Not to mentioned being penned and created by a writer who many of us have been singing her praises for over 25 years, and who always deserved better from the soaps she lent her craft to.

I know a lot of us wanted her to go back to GH, but this is where she needs to be and lend her skills to in 2024. This will be MVJ’s legacy in daytime if all goes well - for her sake and ours, I am really rooting for it to succeed. 

MVJ’s talked a lot about how important mentorship is for developing writers - I really hope she gets the chance to nurture new and diverse writing and producing talent as opposed to recycling through the existing pool of elder statesmen in the daytime swamp. 
 

Edited March 7, 2024 by BetterForgotten

[Contessa Donatella]

March 5, 1979 was AW's first 90 minute show. That's when the affiliates turned on the show, hating the 90 minute iteration & thinking it had been the show's choice to do it. One fell swoop to go from The Darling of the affiliates to full-out disdain. 

And, Sunset Beach is another show that had problems with affiliates not airing it when they were "supposed" to. 

[DramatistDreamer]

Another aspect to consider that the standards and expectations in terms of ratings anyway, are different than they were the last time a new daytime soap was created on network television. I think the standards in terms of cultural standards will be elevated and as @Khan said, if it falls short or there is any attempt to “cheapen” the aesthetic or quality of storytelling, people will be very vocal about it, but I am not sure that the ratings pressure will be as intense as the last time a daytime soap debuted, the median will be lower.

Also, time shifted viewing will be taken into consideration in a way it wasn’t decades ago.