Hulu is adding to its growing slate of original programming, including a new animated series from Seth Meyers that will translate his experiences on “Saturday Night Live” to a gang of superheroes.
Meyers previewed the show, “The Awesomes,” at Hulu’s upfront Thursday. He and co-creator Michael Shoemaker, a producer of “Late Night With Jimmy Fallon” and formerly of “SNL,” said the series will be a behind-the-scenes look at an “Avengers”-like troupe of crime-fighters.
Meyers said “The Awesomes” was based on backstage life at “SNL,” where he is a head writer and Weekend Update host.
The show is planned to debut next year on Hulu, which is co-owned by Disney, News Corp. and NBCUniversal.
Hulu is also producing a series about a group of friends who play pick-up basketball from “Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle” director Danny Leiner, “Are We There Yet?” writer Kenya Barris and “The Game” writer Hale Rothstein. That show, “We Got Next,” will premiere later this year.
Hulu is also planning a fantasy show called “Flow” built around the urban sport of parkour, which involves running, climbing, or leaping rapidly over obstacles, and a music talent discovery show called “Don’t Quit Your Daydream” that’s based on the 2010 documentary by Adrian Grenier and John Loar.
Those four series add to Hulu’s original programming that includes Morgan Spurlock’s “A Day in the Life” and the scripted series “Battleground.” The event Thursday was the first of a series of planned “newfronts” in which digital outlets present their programming to advertisers, much like the traditional TV upfronts in May.
Hulu said that in February, U.S. users watched 2.5 billion videos on the site. Earlier this week, it announced that will charge advertisers only if viewers watch a commercial in full.
Utah Leaders and Locals Rally To Keep Sundance Film Festival In The State
With the 2025 Sundance Film Festival underway, Utah leaders, locals and longtime attendees are making a final push — one that could include paying millions of dollars — to keep the world-renowned film festival as its directors consider uprooting.
Thousands of festivalgoers affixed bright yellow stickers to their winter coats that read "Keep Sundance in Utah" in a last-ditch effort to convince festival leadership and state officials to keep it in Park City, its home of 41 years.
Gov. Spencer Cox said previously that Utah would not throw as much money at the festival as other states hoping to lure it away. Now his office is urging the Legislature to carve out $3 million for Sundance in the state budget, weeks before the independent film festival is expected to pick a home for the next decade.
It could retain a small presence in picturesque Park City and center itself in nearby Salt Lake City, or move to another finalist — Cincinnati, Ohio, or Boulder, Colorado — beginning in 2027.
"Sundance is Utah, and Utah is Sundance. You can't really separate those two," Cox said. "This is your home, and we desperately hope it will be your home forever."
Last year's festival generated about $132 million for the state of Utah, according to Sundance's 2024 economic impact report.
Festival Director Eugene Hernandez told reporters last week that they had not made a final decision. An announcement is expected this year by early spring.
Colorado is trying to further sweeten its offer. The state is considering legislation giving up to $34 million in tax incentives to film festivals like Sundance through 2036 — on top of the $1.5 million in funds already approved to lure the Utah festival to its neighboring... Read More