Renewal of The Peripheral Sparks Criticism Among Amazon Executives

Men of power within Amazon are unhappy with the decision to renew their original show, The Peripheral. 

The series follows the story of Flynne (Chloë Grace Moretz), who is searching for meaning while caring for her sick mother. Flynne is a passionate gamer and shares this interest with her brother Burton, played by Jack Reynor. 

The siblings experiment with a new technology that enables Flynne to explore her dreams, which also endangers her life.

In February, Amazon announced that The Peripheral Season 2 would return to Prime Video. 

However, according to a recent report by The Hollywood Reporter on the current state of Amazon Studios, the decision to renew the show has faced intense criticism.

The report quotes anonymous sources from Amazon suggesting that The Peripheral received only average viewer engagement and should have been canceled. 

Neither Nolan nor Joy, the show’s creators, have responded to these comments. The Hollywood Reporter notes this in their article.

Amazon recently renewed The Peripheral, a sci-fi drama from Jonah Nolan and Lisa Joy that cost close to $175 million for eight episodes (sources say their final eight-episode season of Westworld at HBO cost about $140 million). Amazon has ordered six additional hours of The Peripheral despite what sources say has been lukewarm audience engagement. “It probably should have been canceled.

But they made a megadeal, and the political capital they would lose with Lisa and Jonah would be too great. And they have other shows coming.” Fallout, the next show from Nolan and Joy, is also “extremely expensive,” says a source. Nolan and Joy’s deal has been worth at least $20 million a year since they signed on in 2019. One insider calls the Nolan deal the worst example of Salke’s mantra that Amazon is “a home for talent.’” He adds: “We cede decisions to powerful producers. We hold the line on other producers who do great work for us.

Amazon Studios

So, what exactly do subscribers want to spend their time watching? 

After examining some of the most popular shows from the last six months, it appears that audiences crave dramatic content that would not seem out of place on traditional television networks. 

For instance, The Night Agent, which enjoyed a successful launch on Netflix, could have easily been an action-packed primetime series on ABC. With a few tweaks, even Wednesday would be a perfect fit for a CW-style teen soap opera. 

Another example is Poker Face, which finally gained traction on Peacock. This show offers a new murder mystery each week, making it an ideal standalone program that doesn’t require an ongoing storyline.

While it’s true that unconventional experiments like Swarm can still succeed, audiences tend to gravitate towards more familiar storylines and reliable storytelling. 

With the current state of Peak TV, where over 20 new and returning shows are released each month, many of them fail to make a significant impact and quickly fade away into the crowded landscape.

The Peripheral falls somewhere in between, but what’s curious is that not all industry experts are satisfied with this sci-fi drama. 

To address this issue, streaming services such as Prime Video and its competitors might need to reconsider their approach and reduce the number of shows they produce. 

It would allow more time and resources to be allocated to the shows they choose to support, ensuring they can reach a broader audience.

About The Peripheral

The Peripheral is an American science fiction streaming television series executive produced and created by Scott Smith.

Produced by Amazon, it is based on the 2014 book of the same name written by William Gibson. Westworld creators Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy serve as executive producers, along with Athena Wickham, Steve Hoban, and Vincenzo Natali.

Set in the future when technology has subtly altered society, a woman discovers a secret connection to an alternate reality as well as a dark future of her own.

The series had its world premiere on October 11, 2022, at the Ace Hotel in Los Angeles, before its debut on October 21, 2022, on Amazon Prime Video.