Life After Animax: A Look At Various International Predecessors To The Former DStv Channel

Animax is an international brand which specialises in Japanese animation (or in other terms anime) that is headed by several popular brands including Bandi Namco Networks, Toei Animation, TMS Entertainment, Nihon Ad Systems and Pierrot with Sony Pictures Entertainment handling the distribution.

It operated as a 24 hour service and also on demand spanning in over 89 million households in over 62 countries. As some readers are already aware, Animax hasn't received the best of luck internationally despite holding a concept that not many outlets would to this day.

Sure we have Crunchyroll and to some Netflix but through Animax we were introduced to Neon Genesis Evangelion, Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex, Record of Lodoss War, Eureka Seven, Samurai 7 and Black Jack.

Unfortunately that wasn't enough to retain the brand as sources point to low ratings as a result of its demise. So we look at placeholders that was added to fill the void left not only by the channel or streaming service but the owners as well.

India

In India, the channel was replaced by Sony YAY! which is headed by one of Sony's subsidiaries, Culver Max Entertainment in 2017. Animax's lineup ranged from audiences aged 15-25 years alongside Sony YAY!'s audience aged 6-14 years.

Sony YAY! offers regional content like Bhaalu Yeh Bindass Hai and Chimpoo Simpoo. Even foreign shows like Casper Scare School and Elinor Wonders Why. Before anyone gets disappointed anime forms part of the lineup as there's Naruto and Robotan.

Latin America

In Latin America, Animax was the market's first attempt at getting a 24 hour anime channel but seeing as that was a bust. It was eventually replaced by Sony Spin which was headed by Sony Pictures Entertainment. Unlike the Indian counterpart, this was just their way of forgetting Animax.

Sony Spin was a general entertainment channel for live-action as it featured shows like 90210, Teen Wolf, Blood Ties, Amar Y Temer, Joan of Arcadia and That '70s Show. It ran from 2011-2014 before getting replaced by another random brand, Lifetime.

Lifetime is a general entertainment channel skewed toward female audiences aged 18-34. Supplied by A&E Networks featuring shows like Dance Moms, Storage Wars, Married At First Sight and Little Women. Even offers original films inbetween the programming.

North America

Also American is North America, unlike most of the brands on the list, Animax existed as a digital channel through Crackle but was subsequently discontinued although the provider continues supplying anime with no thanks to Animax.

Eastern Europe

Take note several regions fall under this list including Hungary, Romania, Czech Republic, Poland and Slovakia. Animax ran for almost 7 years within these regions but was replaced by AMC International's C8 by 2014.

C8 was a general entertainment channel which featured a range of content from movies, series, documentaries, lifestyle and kids shows. It lasted a year in Romania and 3 additional years in other regions.

United Kingdom

Almost similar to the North Americans, Animax existed as a digital service between 2013-2018 but was subsequently shut down with viewers being redirected to FUNimation.

FUNimation was an American based entertainment company that specialised in the dubbing and distribution of East Asian content ranging from anime to motion picture. The brand was juggling management one minute it was Navarre Corporation next it was Sony Pictures Entertainment until it folded by Crunchyroll in 2021.

Crunchyroll is a streaming service and takes on a expanded role of FUNimation as it not only distributes content but make originals even merch from those properties. Crunchyroll has both a film and television production company.

Portugal

In Portugal, Animax ran from 2007 to 2011 before getting subsequently replaced by AXN Black. Just like America and Eastern Europe, consumers were given another random brand.

Just like Animax, AXN Black was also headed by Sony Pictures Entertainment as a general entertainment channel which aired a variety of drama series such as Arrow, Prison Break, The Blacklist, Grey's Anatomy and Ghost Whisperer.

It wasn't long till the channel was replaced with movie channel, AXN Movies.

Africa

In 2007, Animax began broadcast within the region and was met with the highest of praises in South Africa that a celebration was hosted in its honour. Following a shift in programming which saw a decline in audiences, the channel was eventually replaced by Sony MAX in 2011.

Sony MAX was a general entertainment channel skewed toward males aged 18-34 years. Featuring a variety of live-action from Fear Factor, 1000 Ways To Die, Impractical Jokers and Baywatch with the exception being The Boondocks.

Before it's closure in 2019, Sony Pictures Entertainment crowded the channel's lineup with a lot of rebroadcasts before removing not only Sony Max but most of their international slate.

Conclusion

After analysing what I've found out about Animax, one thing for certain is the channel was never really a burden to anyone. If anything it could have performed at max capacity or at least for a brand that specialises in anime.

If anything the problem just dealt with time, in the era of Animax there wasn't a lot of alternatives I mean in South Africa. The only other option was SABC 2's 30 minute timeslot which if you look at it offered limited content or at least to what matched Animax.

The demise of Animax particularly in Africa was likely accessibility as this was a premium channel and at the time the bouquet was affordable on a mid tier level. Another could be the target group as the viewership in the rest of Africa was smaller than South Africa.

This is a concept I presume a lot of consumers would love to see more of on cable. I mean Cartoon Network and SABC 2 acquired rights to Dragonball: Super which became the top shows during its run and same goes with Naruto and Bleach on SABC 2.

Tragic Details About Married...With Children

The following article contains references to suicide, addiction, and death.

Love and marriage go together like a horse and carriage: such was the ironic mantra of irreverent '80s and '90s sitcom "Married...With Children," one that was pivotal in popularizing cynicism within mainstream comedy narratives. While a show like "The Simpsons" was renowned for sardonic observations in its '90s heyday, the storylines still relied heavily on sentimentality and traditional family values (both shows came out on the fledgling Fox Network). "Married... With Children," on the other hand, omitted all sentiment and pathos from the plot. The show dispelled notions of the idealized all-American nuclear family and each week gave its viewers a glaring message: the Protestant work ethic doesn't, well, work.

Proving extremely popular with the public, it remained one of Fox's highest rated shows. As a result, the series made stars out of the Bundy family's four main players: Ed O'Neill, Katey Sagal, Christina Applegate, and David Faustino. But the entertainment industry is nothing if not fickle and while a number of the aforementioned stars have enjoyed prosperous post-"Married... With Children" careers, fame and riches were not everlasting for others.

Some of the show's actors struggled with financial woes and drug misuse, while others faced harrowing loss. These beloved stars are resilient to say the least. Get the hankies ready as we delve into tragic details about the cast of "Married... With Children."

Katey Sagal's dad died in a tragic accident

Peg Bundy was arguably the ultimate challenge to the domestic goddess trope. The veritable character was always quick to dish out the barbed jibes at her chauvinistic husband as she enjoyed a life of leisure. Katey Sagal embodied Peg with panache and zeal. But behind the snazzy leopard print outfits and outrageous bouffant lay a deep sadness.

Katey is the daughter of director Boris Sagal. In 1981, he was tragically killed in a helicopter accident when filming the TV movie "World War III," per UPI. At one point, he turned towards the rear of the helicopter, where he was caught up in its blades and severely injured. He died several hours later, aged 57.

Reflecting on the loss, Katey told ABC News that she was shocked when she heard of her father's death, as she had only spoken to him the day before. She details her dad's horrific last moments in her memoir, "Grace Notes." Tragically, she did not get to see him in hospital before he died; by the time she had arrived in Oregon, where he was hospitalized, he succumbed to his injuries. "The whole thing was surreal," she wrote. "Just like that, he was gone, just as he and I were starting to get to know each other." Despite the magnitude of the loss, Sagal has been able to find comfort through the realization that her father is always with her. "I have become him in so many ways. Truly, daddy's girl," she reflected.

Christina Applegate had cancer

As Kelly Bundy, Christina Applegate personified peroxide blond '90s chic, becoming one of many it-girls of the era. Every episode, she garnered rapturous applause from the studio audience (and perhaps one too many instances of sexist hooting). Applegate played Kelly with aplomb, even when faced with some of the cruder put-downs directed at the character.

In 2008, eleven years after "Married...With Children" ended, a then 36-year-old Applegate was diagnosed with breast cancer and underwent a double mastectomy. "It can be very painful," she told Oprah Winfrey. "It's also a part of you that's gone, so you go through a grieving process and a mourning process." Applegate's mom, actor Nancy Priddy, is also a breast cancer survivor and a carrier of the BRCA gene. Poignantly, Applegate decided to take some nude photos prior to having her breasts removed. "[S]o I can kind of remember them," she said.

Unfortunately, the invasive surgery did not end there for Applegate. In 2017, she revealed to Today that she'd elected to have her fallopian tubes and ovaries removed, noting that her cousin died of ovarian cancer. She told the outlet that she fears for her daughter's future; due to the BRCA gene, Applegate revealed, "The chances that my daughter is BRCA positive are very high... It breaks my heart to think that's a possibility." Applegate is now cancer-free and raising awareness of the disease via Right Action for Women, per Elle.

David Faustino's money woes

Poor Bud was always the butt of the joke on "Married...With Children." Despite his intelligence, the perennially single teen just couldn't catch a break. Since playing Bud, David Faustino's career has ebbed and flowed, appearing in bit parts on TV shows, and truly cementing his typecast status with a stint on series "Celebrity Boot Camp" in 2002. In the reality show, he was frequently referred to as "Bud Bundy" by mocking drill instructors.

One might assume Faustino would be set for life thanks to the sitcom, but that isn't exactly the case. He told Access in 2009 that he receives zero residuals from "Married...With Children." "We got really screwed over," Faustino said. "I mean, the show... was on for 11 years, and we all made really good money while we were doing it... But residuals — we all got screwed over." This was due to the fact that Fox, then being a cable channel and thus under a cable contract, was not obliged to pay residuals. "'Married... With Children' has made over a billion dollars, and we didn't really get a piece of that," Faustino conceded.

Though he hasn't landed any other megahit sitcoms since "Married...With Children," Faustino has kept working. He has a number of voice acting credits, he hosted a radio show called "Old Scratch Radio," and per The New York Times, he and fellow TV star Corin Nemec star in the "Curb Your Enthusiasm"-esque web series, "Star-ving."

Ed O'Neill's family struggled financially

There's perhaps no sitcom character who encapsulates the misery of working a job you hate better than Al Bundy. While Ed O'Neill earned big bucks for the role, and later raked in more dollars for "Modern Family," his early life was anything but prosperous. As O'Neill explained to Wealth Simple, he was raised in a working class family in Ohio. "We lived in a ramshackle apartment building... between the train tracks and public housing projects," he said. Both of his parents worked, but money was tight, and as O'Neill said in Wealth Simple, it wasn't always a given that they'd be able to afford basic necessities like utilities. 

His father worked in his hometown's steel mill, and O'Neill eventually began working there, too. The gig was tough; the conditions in the mill were hazardous at best. "You could only stay inside a furnace for five minutes at a stretch, because you'd literally catch on fire," he divulged. "You could feel the graphite in the air singeing your lungs."

Discussing his upbringing in an interview with Capital and Main, O'Neill revealed that his time on the mill highlighted to him the importance of unionization. Having faced unemployment after a brief stint as a footballer, he decided to join the International Brotherhood of Teamsters. "You had to assert yourself, because otherwise they weren't gonna give anything to you... So, I've always been, in my heart of hearts, a teamster, a union guy," he mused.

Katey Sagal overcame drug and alcohol addiction

In her memoir, "Grace Notes," Katey Sagal opened up about her history of alcohol and drug use. She recalled befriending Lorna Luft, daughter of Judy Garland, when she was a kid, and claimed that the two of them would take their mothers' prescription pills. It was not long before she didn't have to swipe someone else's meds. "When I was fourteen, our family doctor prescribed me diet pills, and so I had pills of my own," she wrote. "I got the message: if you feel bad, take a pill."

Of course, this lifestyle was unsustainable and Sagal soon came to terms with her struggles with addiction. As she recalled to ABC News, it was thanks to an encounter with someone in recovery on a TV set that she decided to get sober. Suddenly, she realized that sobriety, something she had long deemed an impossibility, was a reality entirely within her grasp.

Speaking with Bustle, Sagal revealed that the death of her father motivated her to try to quit drugs and alcohol. Then, just two months after getting clean, she scored the role of Peg Bundy on "Married... With Children." "I stayed sober, and watched all the people around me, and I learned how to do what I do now," she told the outlet. She has now been sober for over 30 years.

If you or anyone you know is struggling with addiction issues, help is available. Visit the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration website or contact SAMHSA's National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357).

Katey Sagal's mom died young

Katey Sagal's mother lived with heart disease for many years and these health struggles would be the cause of immense pain for both herself and her daughter. In her memoir, Sagal reflected on the agony of witnessing her mother, Sara Zwilling, suffer from the disease. "Even then as a teenager, I knew there was only so much I could do; that hers was a fragile life, and that it was only a matter of time before there would be an exit," she wrote in a harrowing admission. Tragically, Zwilling's health struggles led to her attempting suicide on more than one occasion. Then, when Sagal was just 21 years old, her adolescent sisters discovered that Zwilling had died in her sleep from a heart attack. However, Sagal believes that her mom actually died by suicide, hypothesizing that the family doctor may have claimed Zwilling's heart condition was the cause of death as a way of sparing her and her sisters' feelings. 

According to Find A Grave, Zwilling was just 48 when she died. Sagal told ABC News that since her mom had been sick for a long time, her death, while devastating, wasn't that surprising. Just six years later, she would lose her father, too.

Speaking with The Hollywood Reporter, Sagal said that writing her memoir was beneficial to re-evaluating her relationship with her parents and learning to truly appreciate them. "It allowed me to miss them...To revisit them is just a way for me to acknowledge how much I love and miss them," she reflected.

Christina Applegate has a chronic illness

There once was a time when pervasive disability discrimination meant that stars had to keep their health diagnoses secret. For instance, Michael J. Fox attempted to disguise his Parkinson's disease for seven years, out of fear of losing work, per The Guardian. Due to widespread efforts to destigmatize disabilities, many celebs are opening up about living with chronic illnesses.

Having survived cancer, Christina Applegate was faced with yet another illness over a decade later. In 2021, she revealed that she had been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, which is a neurological disease usually diagnosed in young adults, according to a 2018 study. The illness causes pain and mobility problems, though severity varies. On Twitter, Applegate reflected on her diagnosis with good humor. "It's been a strange journey," she shared. "But I have been so supported by people that I know who also have this condition. It's been a tough road. But as we all know, the road keeps going. Unless some a**hole blocks it."

She sought comfort in another actor living with MS: Selma Blair. "Loving you always. Always here," Blair wrote to Applegate. "As are our kids. Beating us up with love." During a twitter Q&A with fans, Applegate opened up about her illness and pondered the fact that both she and Blair, her co-star in 2002 comedy "The Sweetest Thing," have MS. Recalling the great time she had on set with Blair, she conceded that it was "Sad both of us have Ms."

Katey Sagal had a stillbirth during filming

In Season 6 of "Married...With Children," both Peg and her neighbor Marcy announced they were pregnant, much to everyone's surprise. The writers decided on this storyline for Peg because Katey Sagal became pregnant in 1991. However, the plotline was soon revealed to be a dream in the episode "Al Bundy, Shoe Dick," per the Los Angeles Times. This decision was due to the writers paying respect to Sagal, who ended up suffering a stillbirth during filming.

During an appearance on "The View," she opened up about the intense guilt she felt after the tragedy. "It was a very difficult thing. I lost a child at almost eight months ... I just couldn't let go of the control, of somehow I had done something wrong," she said. She revealed that the loss took a toll on her mental health and she struggled to leave the house afterwards. A year later, she was able to regain control over her life thanks to some wise words offered by a Buddhist friend. "Sometimes we have these little souls that come in and out," the friend philosophized, "and that their mission is completed."

When Sagal released her debut album, "Well..." in 1994, she paid tribute to the baby she lost on the song "Can't Hurry the Harvest," per the book "Stillborn: Celebrities Who Have Suffered Infant Loss." The song contains the tear-jerking lyrics, "You took so much of me/ Oh my darling, my little one/ Did it have to be this way?"

If you or someone you know is struggling with mental health, please contact the Crisis Text Line by texting HOME to 741741, call the National Alliance on Mental Illness helpline at 1-800-950-NAMI (6264), or visit the National Institute of Mental Health website.

Some of the supporting actors died from cancer

Tragically, a number of "Married...With Children's" wacky ensemble players died before their time. Buck the dog was always the sagacious voice of reason amid the chaos and dysfunction of the Bundy household. Although sometimes voiced by Cheech Marin of Cheech and Chong fame, he was usually voiced by show writer Kevin Curran, per The New York Times. In addition to "Married... With Children," Curran wrote for another irreverent sitcom that poked fun at the American Dream: "The Simpsons." Sadly, Curran died of complications from cancer in 2016. He was 59.

Likewise, Diana Bellamy, who depicted frequent shoe store customer Shirley, played a pivotal role on the series. While the character was often mocked by the disgruntled shoe salesman, Shirley gave the sexist protagonist a run for his money, throwing the barbs back as quickly as he dished them out. In 2001, Bellamy died of cancer at the age of 57, per the Los Angeles Times. Prior to her death, she had been living with blindness, a complication of the cancer, though she viewed her disability with optimism. "I had tried crying and being in a snit about [blindness]," the character actor quipped, "but that was real boring."

Per USA Today, one of the show's most memorable guest stars, original "Glow" wrestler Beckie Mullen, died in 2020, again from cancer. She was just 55. Famously, Mullen appeared in Al's dream sequence wrestling a young Pamela Anderson in Season 5's "Al...with Kelly."

David Faustino was arrested on drug charges

Much of Bud Bundy's comedic escapades were based around the hapless teen's attempts to be a "bad boy," despite his high achievement at school and a clean-cut reputation (he famously rebranded himself as self-styled rap god Grandmaster B). While Bud was a (usually) law-abiding citizen, David Faustino found himself on the wrong side of the law in 2007.

Per Access, Faustino and his wife were pulled over by cops, and the officers found marijuana in his possession. He was also believed to have been driving under the influence. CBS News offered further information into the arrest. Reportedly, Faustino attempted to evade capture by the police by jumping out of his car, but was eventually caught and sent to jail. His charges included disorderly intoxication.

As reported by Fox News, the charges were dropped once Faustino completed a drug treatment program. "He received no special treatment from the State Attorney's Office," Faustino's attorney said. "He did what was asked of him, and he fulfilled all of his conditions." In an interview with The New York Times two years after his arrest, Faustino said he still smoked weed, but that's the long and short of it. "They just offered me 'Celebrity Rehab...' I don't want to go on TV and spill my guts," he told the outlet, noting that the offer made little sense since he did not struggle with addiction.

Katey Sagal was devastated by the death of her friend

After "Married...With Children," Katey Sagal enjoyed further sitcom fame on "8 Simple Rules." Soon, however, tragedy would strike. In 2003, Sagal's onscreen husband, comedy mainstay John Ritter, began feeling unwell while rehearsing on set, per Today. After vomiting profusely, he was sent to the emergency room and died soon after, at the age of 54. 

Although his death was deemed a heart attack, the actor's widow, Amy Yasbeck, believed that it could have been prevented. Yasbeck claimed that doctors had misinterpreted Ritter's medical results, leading to his untimely death. Accordingly, she filed a lawsuit. As reported by People, Sagal was devastated by Ritter's passing and testified in his wrongful death trial. "I loved John," she told the jury as she wept. Per E! News, the doctors were ultimately cleared of any wrongdoing.

Thereafter, Ritter's death was poignantly written into "8 Simple Rules," showing both the cast and the Hennessy family dealing in real time with the tragic loss. Opening up about her friend's passing, Sagal told EW that she was grateful for being given the opportunity to grieve onscreen, stating that it wouldn't have felt right to continue with the show without addressing the tragedy. "What I loved about that job was John Ritter. John was an amazing person," she reflected. "I'll never forget when I had to audition for that job... John whispered to me while I was in there, 'You're my favorite. You're the one I want.' Which was so, so sweet."

Comedies Films That Never Got Sequels

1. National Lampoon’s Animal House II

After Animal House became a surprise hit in 1978, Universal started pushing for a another one. A few drafts were written, with the new project depicting the members of Delta House five years later in the Summer of Love. A draft of the script, which you can read a review of here, was even turned in after John Belushi’s death. This particular edition of the screenplay made no mention of Bluto Blutarsky until the last scene in which the Deltas toast him. Needless to say, Animal House without John Belushi makes very little sense, and that’s why the studio scrapped this project.

2. Roger Rabbit: The Toon Platoon/Who Discovered Roger Rabbit?

A direct-to-video prequel to Who Framed Roger Rabbit?, entitled Roger Rabbit: The Toon Platoon, was written in the late ‘80s but never got off the ground. The WWII-era story involved a young Roger Rabbit rescuing Jessica Rabbit from Nazi forces and ended with a surprise reveal that Roger’s father is Bugs Bunny. For obvious reasons, the project was scrapped, only to be resurrected in the late ‘90s. Spielberg had the Nazi stuff dropped and the plot was changed to cover Roger Rabbit’s rise to fame on Broadway and in Hollywood, now called Who Discovered Roger Rabbit? This new proposed version was to feature a mix of CGI, live-action, and traditional animation, but the budget quickly ballooned out of control and this incarnation was called off, as well. News came in 2009 that Robert Zemeckis was working on another sequel idea, so Roger Rabbit still isn’t safe from franchise-dom.

3. Triplets

Right after the Ivan Reitman-directed, Arnold Schwarzenegger-Danny DeVito vehicle Twins became a big hit, Universal began eyeing a sequel. The movie would have been called Triplets and Roseanne Barr, still in the brief two-year window in the late ‘80s where she was allowed to be in movies, was the top choice for the third sibling. This one was shot down fairly quickly, as it should have been, and never even made it to the script stage.

4. Beetlejuice Goes Hawaiian

A script for a Beetlejuice sequel was written in the early ‘90s that involved the Deets family building a resort in Hawaii that happens to be on top of a burial ground. Beetlejuice would return to help the Deets scare off ghosts and participate in a surfing competition. Ugh. It sounds more like an episode of the animated series than a worthy film sequel. Tim Burton was interested in returning to the director’s chair, but he soon became busy with other projects. Michael Keaton was still interested when asked as recently as 2005, but no current plans exist to bring Beetlejuice back to the screen.

5. Good Morning, Chicago

Touchstone Pictures commissioned a sequel be written to the Robin Williams vehicle Good Morning, Vietnam after that film became a hit in 1989. The original’s director, Barry Levinson was set to return, along with Williams, until the creative team decided the project wasn’t worth pursuing. This planned sequel would have involved Williams’s rambunctious DJ character doing his thing during the turbulent 1968 Democratic National Convention. This sounds like one of the better ideas on this list and an interesting place to take Robin Williams’s character, but Good Morning, Vietnam tells a complete story in its own right and doesn’t really demand a sequel.

6. Ghostbusters III: Hellbent

Dan Aykroyd wrote the script for Ghostbusters III: Hellbent in the late ‘90s, and the planned sequel involved the Ghostbusters being transported to a version of Hell that resembles Manhattan. Ben Stiller, Chris Rock, and Chris Farley were widely-rumored to make up the new batch of Ghostbusters recruits, but plans fell through and this particular idea was scrapped. While Ghostbusters III is still in development, pending Bill Murray’s approval, the current incarnation is presumably different than Aykroyd’s ‘90s idea. Sending the Ghostbusters to Hell sounds like it could be interesting (at least it’s a better concept for a movie than evil slime creeping up from the Earth and stealing Dana Barrett’s baby). Many of the ideas for Hellbent were incorporated into the recent multi-platform Ghostbusters video game.

7. Blue Streak 2

It may not be saying a lot, but Blue Streak is one of Martin Lawrence’s better films and one more worthy of sequel-dom than, say, Big Momma’s House. Columbia Pictures was so satisfied with the box office returns on the first installment that they had a script written for a sequel, which involved Martin Lawrence pretending to be a spy. The original’s director Les Mayfield was set to return for Blue Streak 2, along with Lawrence, and production was set to start up in 2001. For whatever reason, plans were called off before production ever began

Sure, Blue Streak 2 seems unnecessary, but what Martin Lawrence movie doesn’t? At least it makes more sense than making a Black Knight 2.

8. Seriously Dude, Where’s My Car?

A Dude, Where’s My Car? sequel was in development for years but never came to fruition. The first movie was a breakthrough role for Ashton Kutcher, allowing him to transition from That ‘70s Show to movie stardom. The sequel was ramping up towards production eyeing a start date in 2003, but Kutcher shot the idea down before filming began. Dude, Where’s My Car? lives on in spirit, though, as Todd Phillips has gotten a lot of mileage out of the original’s “What happened last night?” formula, employing the premise to greater success in his Hangover series.

9. Mrs. Doubtfire 2

20th Century Fox started putting together a Mrs. Doubtfire sequel in 2003, ten years after the release of the original, and talk show host/comedian Bonnie Hunt was brought in to write the script. Robin Williams was on board initially, but he dropped out in 2006, expressing dissatisfaction with the screenplay. The sequel was to involve Williams’s character donning the Mrs. Doubtfire disguise to watch after his daughter while she’s away at college. While Mrs. Doubtfire is one of Robin Williams’s best movies, it really seems like he’s protecting himself as well as us here.

10. Office Space 2

While Mike Judge’s workplace comedy Office Space is now a beloved cult classic that’s achieved a great deal of success, the movie was a box office disappointment upon its initial release. When Office Space became a hit on home video and cable years later, Fox came to Mike Judge wanting to make a sequel, but Judge’s experiences with the original film’s failure were so frustrating that he’s avoided a second outing.

Mike Judge probably made the right call here, even though an Office Space sequel could have boosted his movie career. Most of Judge’s success has been in television with shows like King of the Hill and Beavis and Butt-head, while his films have had poor commercial performances - at least at first. Office Space and Idiocracy both became successes long after they were in theaters, as botched marketing jobs by the studio ruined their commercial prospects. With Office Space 2, Judge would have had a built-in audience of fans of the first movie, and this could have been the first film of his to be a commercial hit upon its initial release, guaranteeing him more creative control over his projects in the future and making it easier for him to get his stuff made. If Office Space 2 had been a hit sometime around 2001-2004 when it would have likely been produced if Judge said yes, Fox might have actually given him the budget he wanted to make Idiocracy, granted the film a wider release, and bothered to market it.

The first Office Space tells a complete and finite story, and it might have been a stretch to believe Peter Gibbons would ever return to the workplace; but if Mike Judge were writing and directing again, I’m sure he would have come up with something that wasn’t just a carbon copy of the first film.

11. Elf 2 and Old School Dos

Although he’s been trying to push Anchorman 2 into development with Adam McKay, Will Ferrell has thus far not participated in any sequel to one of his own films. Elf and Old School have been amongst those offered to Ferrell, but he’s turned them both down. He said ‘no’ to $29 million to star in the Elf sequel, and the studio hasn’t yet tried to pull a Son of the Mask and proceed with a different actor in his place. Ferrell had this to say about his anti-sequel stance:

“I remember asking myself: could I withstand the criticism when it’s bad and they say, ‘He did the sequel for the money?’ I decided I wouldn’t be able to. I didn’t want to wander into an area that could erase all the good work I’ve done — but you watch, I’ll do some sequel in the future that’s crap.”
Scot Armstrong wrote a script for the Old School sequel, titled Old School Dos, but Ferrell and co-star Vince Vaughn both shot it down. It would involve the guys reuniting for Spring Break in Daytona Beach. Ferrell spoke highly of the sequel’s script, though, saying:

“I read [the script]. Some super funny set pieces, but I don’t know. I think Vince [Vaughn] had the same reaction. We’re just kind of doing the same thing again. It was like us going to Spring Break, but we’ve got to find this guy who’s the head of a fraternity. Once again, funny things but it’s just us once again back in a fraternity setting. It just felt like it was repeating. But watch, I’m over thinking it.”
Both the Elf and Old School sequels would likely be big hits for Will Ferrell as the originals are still well-regarded today. These successes would have allowed Ferrell more leeway to get his own projects made and helped him to weather the box office failures of Land of the Lost and Semi-Pro, but Ferrell’s reluctance to produce a shoddy sequel is admirable. We’ve all strolled through the local Cineplex, wondering “Who asked for this?” when giant posters for undeserved sequels pop up (cough, cough, Deuce Bigelow). While Ferrell feels a second Old School wouldn’t be a good move for himself, Old School Dos is just about the only way Luke Wilson’s going to get to star in a major movie ever again after a recent string of flops. He seems to be the one hurt most by Ferrell’s integrity.

12. Wild Hogs 2: Bachelor Ride

When Wild Hogs became the highest grossing live-action comedy of 2007, it should have struck fear into the hearts of all comedy fans. 2007 was by all means a very good year for film comedy, seeing the release of Knocked Up, Hot Fuzz, Superbad, Walk Hard, and Juno. It’s a little distressing to think that Wild Hogs bested all of these much-more worthy comedies. Of course, there’s the box office conspiracy theory that Wild Hogs only did so well because teenagers were buying tickets to it so they could sneak into the R-rated flick 300, but it still sickens me to think about how much money Wild Hogs made and the impact it could have had on comedy.

It seems like the success of Wild Hogs would have inspired a whole slew of similar movies but only two were greenlit before studios realized the movie’s success was a fluke: the John Travolta/Robin Williams starrer Old Dogs and Wild Hogs 2: Bachelor Ride, which would have transported the action to Europe for William H. Macy’s bachelor party. When Old Dogs bombed, WH2 — as fans were calling it — was called off, and comedy nerds rejoiced.

13. The Love Guru 2 and 3

It’s not a surprise that Mike Myers was hoping for The Love Guru to be his next Wayne’s World or Austin Powers. Sure, the film lacked a lot of the appeal of those earlier characters, but it just felt like a movie that was intended to be the start of a film series. Myers began discussing sequels with the studio more than year before production on The Love Guru began. You read that right. Sequels, plural. Not just one sequel, more than one of them.

If The Love Guru had been a hit, we would likely be seeing a second and third installment pop up in theaters around this time. Fans would be repeating whatever Mike Myers’s characters catchphrases were, in an Indian accent. Love Guru backpacks, action figures, lunchboxes, Halloween costumes. Mike Myers’s smiling faux-Indian face on merchandise everywhere, Hell on Earth.

Instead, Mike Myers seems to have grown more reclusive since the film’s failure. The only movie parts he’s had in the last three years have been popping up in a bit role in Inglourious Basterds and voicing the title character in the fourth Shrek installment. A hypothetical lucrative Love Guru franchise would have forced Myers to leave his mansion to film sequels and possibly given his career the momentum to allow him to make an Austin Powers 4.

14. School of Rock 2: America Rocks

A sequel to School of Rock was in the works back in 2008, with key players Jack Black, director Richard Linklater, and writer Mike White set to return. Under the cringe-inducingly jingoistic title School of Rock 2: America Rocks, White completed a draft of the script, in which Jack Black “leads a bunch of summer school students on a cross-country field trip to explore the history of rock.” Plans never came together and Richard Linklater recently told the press, “”I don’t think that’s ever going to happen. Never say never but currently, no. It never seemed to gel.”  Linklater and Black did reunite, though, for the two’s most recent project, a dark comedy called Bernie, which will be released later that year.

15. The Naked Gun 4: The Rhythm of Evil

The script for a fourth Naked Gun installment was completed last year and was reportedly quite funny, but Paramount scrapped the project over financial issues. The studio had found the perfect writer for the job, too, in Alan Spencer, creator of Sledge Hammer! Spencer’s script was said to be very good, and this would have been the perfect career capper for Leslie Nielsen, but it never came to be. The sequel script involved Nielsen’s Frank Drebin returning to duty to oversee the new Police Squad and train a fresh rookie cop.

16. Anchorman 2

The entire original gang was ready to sequelize Anchorman back in 2010, but Paramount, the studio that holds the rights to the franchise is standing in the way. Since Steve Carell and Paul Rudd have become big stars since Anchorman, you’d think it would be hard to get the budget under control; but everyone involved has agreed to take pay cuts. Paramount still won’t budge, with Ferrell claiming the studio said, “We’ve run the numbers and it’s not a good fit.” There’s still a chance that the execs at Paramount will come to their senses, but at things stand now, they hold the rights to Anchorman and don’t have any interest in a sequel.

New Series Alert: Cartoon Network And Max Greenlight New Preschool Series For Cartoonito, Hop! From Arthur Series Creator Marc Brown

Following last year’s momentous finale of the beloved “Arthur” series, creator Marc Brown is beginning his next chapter in the world of children’s television with “Hop,” a new preschool animated series greenlit today by Max. The series marks Brown’s first television show since “Arthur’s” staggering 25-year run, where he began telling children’s stories. Co-creators and fellow “Arthur” alums, Peter K. Hirsch and Tolon Brown, will join Marc in bringing his beloved children’s book illustrations to life on “Hop,” produced by Epic Story Media and animated by Loomi Animation.

Epic has engaged RespectAbility – the esteemed advocacy nonprofit organization fighting stigma and advancing opportunity for people with disabilities – to consult on the series.  “Hop” follows an eclectic group of besties whose comedic adventures teach preschoolers about embracing their own uniqueness. Led by Hop, an enthusiastic, empathetic frog with one leg shorter than the other, he and his quirky friends address kid-relatable problems with a healthy dose of laughter, silliness, and adventure.

Set in the aspirational community of Fair Village, every episode is grounded in emotional reality but soars into the world of fantasy, populated by dragons, trolls, talking banjos, and magic crayons. With a gentle balance of humor and heart, our heroes go on fun escapades to discover that they can overcome any obstacle with perseverance, creativity, and teamwork. Together, they show us the power of friendship and kindness as they navigate the mud puddles of life.

“Even before ‘Arthur’ ended, I was nurturing a new project about a little frog named Hop, for a younger audience,” said Brown. “As Hop’s world grew in my imagination, I drew inspiration from the great work my friend Fred Rogers had done. With ‘Arthur,’ we occasionally introduced characters with disabilities, but they never became part of the ensemble cast in any meaningful way. But the characters in “Hop” reflect many kids who are underrepresented in the media.  Some of our characters have disabilities but they never define who they are or what they can achieve. Kids are kids and each one is unique and filled with potential. And kids love to have fun, that’s what ‘Hop’ is all about!”

Ken Faier of Epic Story Media adds, “We’re extremely proud of our work and collaboration with industry experts on representing characters in an inclusive way. It is an honor to have developed ‘Hop’ with Marc, Peter and Tolon who know how to engage not only today’s youth but parents looking for quality content. We believe ‘Hop’ will have longevity in the marketplace for many years to come.”

Michael Ouweleen, president of Adult Swim, Cartoon Network, and Boomerang added: “Marc is a legend in children’s programming, having created one of the most iconic television shows that has garnered almost every honor imaginable. ‘Hop’ exudes everything families love about ‘Arthur,’ but with a fresh cast of modern characters that authentically represent the sundry of little eyes watching TV.”

What Happened To Trace Sport Stars?

Trace Sports Stars is a lifestyle channel that celebrated the life of sports through factual entertainment, reality shows and gossip similar to E! operated by NBCUniversal. The channel supplies various originals such as Up Close, Bad Boys In Sports and Football Stars.

The channel was added in 2011/2 on Sky UK and MultiChoice's DStv across Africa as Trace Sports. Two years later, it went dark in the UK which coincides with the rebrand to Trace Sports Stars as they didn't offer live sports and the name didn't coincide with the offering.

When looking at a brand name like Trace Sports, one would assume they'd play actual sports like English Premier League, La Liga and WWE and although the content is focused solely on that topic. It just didn't really stick with some consumers.

In general, Trace Sports Stars was a wreck not because the channel couldn't get fresh content as it did possess potential but likely due to the fact that this type of content promoted by the channel isn't watched by vast majority as seen with the actual sporting events.

That in mind is what led to it's demise on MultiChoice's DStv with Trace Africa coming in place and at that time it was made available on rivals On Digital Media and StarTimes' StarSat and eMedia Investments' Openview platform.

This was Openview's first attempt at anything sports with StarSat offering a platform to reject channels or affordable entertainment. But of course, both brands ended scrapping the channel before 2018 for similar reasons as MultiChoice - viewership.

As of 2023, Trace Sports Stars is not viewable anywhere in Africa but that doesn't mean the channel is completely lost as it can be obtained on Binge Networks (USA), Sky (Mexico), Viaccess-Orca (France) and NTV Plus (Russia).

To be frank, Trace Sports Stars remains sustainable if anything it's not performing as well as it's musical family Trace Urban, Trace Gospel, Trace Toca, Trace Mziki and Trace Naija all of which are viewable on MultiChoice's DStv in selected territories.

Disney Planning To Restart The Pirate Of The Caribbean's Franchise

Sean Bailey, the president of Walt Disney Studios Motion Picture Production, recently spoke with the New York Times to talk about Disney’s live-action projects and one of those projects was Pirates of the Caribbean.

Bailey says restarting the Pirates franchise is a priority at Disney. “We think we have a really good, exciting story that honors the films that have come before but also has something new to say”

For those unaware, Disney is actually developing multiple Pirates projects and we highlight each project and share everything we know so far. So let’s set sail and get into the nitty-gritty.

Pirates Project #1
Back in 2018, it was reported that Deadpool and Zombieland 2: Double Tap writers Paul Wernick and Rhett Reese, were brought on to write Pirates 6, but would drop out months later and were replaced by Chernobyl and The Last of Us creator Craig Mazin and Pirates alum Ted Elliot. While there have been no story details or massive updates on this project, it is still the main Pirates project Disney is actively working on. That said, in 2019, we exclusively reported that Guardians of the Galaxy star Karen Gillan was someone Disney was looking at to star. This project will exist in the previous Pirates of the Caribbean movies continuity, so a return from stars Orlando Bloom, Kiera Knightley, Brenton Thwaites, and Kaya Scodelario is definitely on the table.

Pirates Project #2
In 2020, a report surfaced that Harley Quinn herself Margot Robbie would star in a female-led reboot from Bumblebee writer Christina Hodson. This project is not intended to be a spinoff, but a new story, with new characters set in the Pirates universe. Despite rumors last year that this project was axed, franchise producer Jerry Bruckheimer dispelled that, saying “I think that that script will come forward at a certain point. We developed two different stories for Pirates and the other one’s going forward first, so that’s what we’re working on, to try to get that one made.” The story Bruckheimer is referring to would be the first project we talked about. We had heard when this project was in active development Disney was looking at some pretty big-name actors to star alongside Robbie, names we heard included Jason Momoa, Richard Madden, and Sebastian Stan.

Pirates Project #3
A fun piece of information we shared on The DisInsider Show during our “Rumor of the Week” segment, is that Disney has put a Pirates of the Caribbean Disney+ on the drawing board and are in very early development stages. At this time, I don’t have any further information on this project as it is still in the early stages.

The Elephant in the Room
It’s what everyone wants to know, is Johnny Depp returning to the franchise as Captain Jack Sparrow? A role that garned him an Oscar nomination for his work in Curse of the Black Pearl. Despite rumors last year that the actor had actually closed a deal to appear in a sixth movie and that he was also planning to help co-write the film, after his very public defamation trial against Amber Heard last year, the actor made it very clear that he would never forgive Disney for the way they publicly distanced themselves from him. Some insiders believe he will return. Bruckheimer told Deadline earlier this year that he would still reach out to Depp because Johnny was both his friend and “an amazing artist.” Acknowledging that enough time has passed between him, Disney, and Depp, he explained his reasoning by saying, “You go through things in life that you wish you hadn’t done right.” Bailey was asked about Depp once again and said “Noncommittal at this point,” which is an inkling that a return is very possible.

Now, here is what we at The DisInsider know, we have talked with some people in the industry and we have heard the goal is to bring Depp back in a passing of the torch role, whether that would be in a starring, supporting, or cameo role is currently unknown.

The franchise originated with the Pirates of the Caribbean theme ride attraction, which opened at Disneyland in 1967, the last Disney theme park attraction overseen by Walt Disney. The attraction can be found at four Disney theme parks. Since then, it has become a moneymaker, the five films have grossed over $4.5 billion at the worldwide box office. The franchise has also become a revenue booster in video games, merchandise, and more.

CG 'Dora The Explorer' Reboot Now Set For Spring 2024

Last February, it was announced that the long-running Nick Jr. series Dora the Explorer would be getting a 3D CG reboot on Paramount+. While initially set for sometime this year, it will unfortunately not be the case.

The June 2023 issue of Toy World Magazine declares that the new series with the Latina heroine will arrive next spring. The series, tentatively titled ¡Dora!, is described as a reimagining of the classic show which “promises to strike the perfect balance between the comfort of the familiar and the excitement of the fresh.” It will feature the notable characters from the original series, with not only Boots and Swiper but as the only released art shows, Isa, Tico, and Benny too. A key modernization to the storytelling is also teased, unclear as to what (could it be the fact that the series was originally in the world of a point-and-click PC game?). While Toy World is a British magazine, that only makes the difference of a day or so based on recent releases rather than be any substantially staggered rollout separated by months or even whole seasons.

In addition, the live-action series that had been announced the year before alongside what became The Fairly OddParents: Fairly Odder? That's still coming. As previously revealed, it’s tween-aimed and inspired by the tone of the 2019 film Dora and the Lost City of Gold, an occasion that several original series episodes that had still yet to air for five years would be used to commemorate.

Paramount is set to showcase the new Dora the Explorer series at Licensing Expo 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada, taking place June 13-15. Whether it’s both series is unclear. Of course, these are the franchise’s fourth and fifth series, following Go Diego Go! which ran from 2005 to 2011, and Dora and Friends: Into the City, which ran from 2014 to 2017. All three released TV series are currently streaming on Paramount+.

The Simpsons: A Tribute To Hollywood's Finest Actors, Phil Hartman

Later episodes of The Simpsons tend to unfold like Radiohead songs, starting off one way before taking an abrupt left turn. In stark contrast to this style, the plot of Season 2 gem “Bart Gets Hit By a Car” is thrust into motion within its first minute… when Bart gets hit by a car. Immediately afterward, the boy’s soul sheds its mortal shell and ascends the escalator to heaven, guided by a voice that is both pleasant and firm. It’s the kind of voice designed to convey trust during a commercial, and also the kind used during a fake commercial to mock such naked appeals for trust, perhaps on Saturday Night Live. If this hauntingly familiar voice wasn’t one that viewers recognized at the time of the original airing, it was one they would soon know very well: this was the first Simpsons appearance of Phil Hartman.

It is an honor to be invited as a guest voice on The Simpsons. Only after you’ve “made it” in some way within your chosen field will this gesture be extended. Athletes, actors, artists, and architects alike have been written in as guests over the 22-season run of the show, all contributing to its Guinness Book world record for Most Guest Stars. Only a fraction of these people, however, have been asked back a second time. In that regard, Phil Hartman is in an elite class with Albert Brooks, Jon Lovitz, Kelsey Grammer, and Joe Mantegna as frequent guests. (Coincidentally, this is also my Murderer’s Row dream-cast for a Glengarry Glen Ross stage revival.) As a frequent-frequent guest, though, Phil Hartman was in a class all his own: he was featured in 52 episodes over a period of eight years. To this day, that’s over a tenth of the total output of a show that also holds the world record for Longest-Running Sitcom of all time.

It’s no secret why The Simpsons producers and writers kept wanting to bring Phil Hartman back: the man was a comedic powerhouse. Hartman’s career in comedy began at the age of 27, when he spontaneously climbed onstage during a Groundlings show. In 1975, he would officially join the troupe as a performer. (Try jumping onstage during a show now, though, and see what happens.) As part of The Groundlings, Hartman helped Paul Reubens develop the concept of his Peewee Herman character, co-writing Peewee’s Big Adventure and performing as Captain Carl. Later, the two had a falling out, though, and Hartman went on to bigger and better things at Saturday Night Live. This is perhaps where he is best known, and rightfully so. His star turns on SNL were legendary, but so was his gracious willingness to take smaller roles and allow others to shine. Across eight seasons, Phil Hartman made an indelible mark on that show’s storied history as the ultimate utility player – although his range and talent were obvious even on his audition tape. Hartman Impressions of Bill Clinton and Frank Sinatra co-existed on Saturday Night Live with original characters like Unfrozen Caveman Lawyer, and he was always up for any bit of weirdness that called for a stentorian tone. Perhaps the key to his success, in fact, was his voice.

There a certain quality to this voice that was both high-voltage and velvety, a sonic cocktail that was everything you needed it to be. The fact that Phil Hartman’s voice could sound so unctuous and slimy at times meant that he usually portrayed a villainous rival in family-friendly movies like Small Soldiers, Jingle All the Way, and Greedy. But he could also do heroic too, and in animated form, he was able to explore these types of characters on The Simpsons. There he played Moses on the mountain, Bart’s adopted father, Tom, and Charlton Heston’s likeness in the musical, Stop the Planet of the Apes, I Want to Get Off (featuring the showstopper, “Dr. Zaius, Dr. Zaius”.) He even got the chance to bring his Bill Clinton impression over from Saturday Night Live for a Halloween episode appearance. Mostly, though, Phil Hartman’s contribution to The Simpsons consisted of two characters, and these were anything but biblical, heroic, or presidential.

In the episode mentioned earlier, “Bart Gets Hit By a Car”, Homer hires bargain basement attorney Lionel Hutz to represent him. “Here’s my card,” Hutz says. “It turns into a sponge if you hold it underwater!” What started off as a barely embellished caricature of an ambulance-chasing shyster eventually devolved into a down-and-out drunken hobo who also happened to be an attorney. In that first episode, though, Lionel Hutz would have actually won his case against Mr. Burns if Homer Simpson wasn’t in fact Homer Simpson, and therefore physically incapable of allowing such an outcome to occur. Hutz was meant to be a one-time role, but the staff loved Hartman and wanted to use him again. Their next chance came just a couple episodes later, in the form of another new character in the Simpsons universe.

We are introduced to Troy McClure as he hosts the TV show, I Can’t Believe They Invented That. This show-within-a-show would frequently pop up in brief bits featuring washed up actor McClure and quack Dr. Nick Riviera hawking ridiculous products like Spiffy, a cleaning solvent strong enough to clean the grime off of Edgar Allen Poe’s tombstone. More often than infomercials, though, Troy McClure would be glimpsed starring in random educational videos filmed at various points in his career. Whenever there was an opportunity to include an instructional video of any kind, the Simpsons producers could always plug in Phil Hartman and get a laugh out of his perpetually changing catchphrase. “Hi, I’m Troy McClure,” he would always start. “You might remember me from such educational films as ‘Lead Paint: Delicious But Deadly’, and ‘Here Comes the Metric System.’” According to interviews, Troy McClure was Hartman’s favorite character, and he used to entertain the crew on the set of his post-SNL show, NewsRadio, by doing the Troy McClure voice in-between takes.

As with Saturday Night Live, Phil Hartman played the background a lot on The Simpsons, but he also had a couple of moments in the spotlight, including one of the widely agreed-upon greatest episodes of all time – the Conan O’Brien-scripted “Marge vs. The Monorail” – where he played Lyle Lanley, the colorful singing swindler based on The Music Man. Another starring performance of his came in the “Fish Called Selma” episode, which was developed to give Troy McClure more of a back story, albeit one in which his character has fallen on hard times due to an embarrassing sexual proclivity involving marine life. On the DVD commentary for this episode, the producers mention that Phil Hartman was interested in doing a live-action Troy McClure movie, an intriguing proposition which could have either been a star-making role or gone the way of MacGruber.

After Phil Hartman’s untimely death in May of 1998, the producers on The Simpsons wisely decided not to find a replacement for the characters of Troy McClure or Lionel Hutz. This move was both a display of respect to the actor, and an admission that he was impossible to replace. Although he was nicknamed The Glue for his work on Saturday Night Live, perhaps Hartman was also the secret weapon that kept The Simpsons together too. In order to maximize Hartman’s limited availability, nearly every episode that featured Lionel Hutz also featured Troy McClure and vice versa, thus guaranteeing at least a couple bankable extra laughs in every other episode. That may not seem like a lot, but it adds up. Phil Hartman was undoubtedly part of the reason why seasons 2-9 of The Simpsons are roundly thought to be the show’s best years.

eReality On DStv: Here's Everything Briefly Wants You To Know About The eFamily Member Channel

Briefly News is a South African digital media and news platform that was founded in 2014. It is one of South Africa’s largest news and entertainment websites and one of the top-earning brands on Facebook in Africa. It is also partner to Genesis Media Emerging Markets.

Genesis Media Emerging Markets, a digital media holding operating in South Africa, Nigeria, Kenya, Ghana and worldwide. Other GMEM news projects include Legit.ng (Nigeria), TUKO.co.ke (Kenya), YEN.com.gh (Ghana) and Sportsbrief.com (Worldwide).

In 2018, eMedia Investments launched a free-to-air reality channel on the Openview platform, eReality. It currently ranks as the most popular reality channel in the market featuring local and international series from e.tv, NBC, M-Net, Oxygen, BBC and MTV.

Prior to its rollout on Openview, rumours swirled around that eMedia Investments would be adding eReality as the 6th channel to MultiChoice's DStv joining the now defunct eBella alongside eExtra, eMovies, eMovies Extra and eToonz.

Of course, not much was known about its potential rollout it was believed to be replacing eBella as news of a possible rollout of the reality channel coincided with the termination of the channel which introduced viewers to shows like Qubool Hai and Fatmagul.

Last year, an author of Briefly published a story about eReality but this time as a channel for DStv. Of course, not much is known about what led to the mix up or which channel the author was referring as they listed it under the Compact bouquet but not Openview.

eMedia Investments gave away broadcasting rights to eNCA to MultiChoice for another 5 years preventing Openview consumers from ever viewing the channel with SABC News currently viewable on SABC's DTT and streaming service, SABC+.

Briefly now viewing eReality as a DStv channel, would it be a bad idea to rip the channel away from Openview consumers as the switch to DStv could help give brands like TLC and MTV a ran for their money with their 90 Day Fiance and Teen Moms.

Honestly, it's better off on Openview as there's not much alternatives to the content and as seen with eMedia's 4 other channels on DStv. It would have likely joined the group of channels awaiting their departure from the pay-tv operator for carrying "DStv Repeats".

Source: Briefly

Universal TV Vs. BBC Brit: The Home Of Premium Entertainment

Universal and BBC Brit are international general entertainment channel respectively owned by US based company NBCUniversal and UK based company BBC Studios. These happen to be one of the few premium entertainment channels left globally as streaming has taken a toll with how content is viewed.

Universal is an action, adventure and crime based channel which is home to cop dramas such as Chicago PD and NCIS: Los Angeles, medical shows like Transplant and Chicago Med and finally mystery and supernatural dramas like Departure and Fantasy Island.

BBC Brit adapts to a similar form as Universal as they too offer dramas such as EastEnders and William Shakespeare. But the channel doesn't consider itself Universal exclusive as there's other content like The Graham Norton Show, Total Wipeout and Top Gear.

One of the things I think most people won't like about Universal is the amount of rehashed content that various local providers air first-hand. I mean I don't mind a little nostalgia every now and then I mean they got Bones and Rizzoli And Isles but these rebroadcasts get a bit annoying.

When it comes to BBC Brit, I'd say a lot of channels need to be done. I mean it's more like Universal on the repetitive side but imagine watching the same season of Top Gear repeatedly on top of that having 3 shows take up most of the schedule.

Not long ago, BBC First was shelved with BBC Brit having to pull the muscle I mean come on 2 hours of primetime with 2 hours of repeats during the day but Top Gear gets more than that on a daily basis.

If you're looking for top notch entertainment head on down to Universal sure you won't get Graham Norton or Planet Earth but you sure won't have a lineup that is as repetitive as a certain kids brand I prefer leaving unnamed.

BBC Brit is a waste but the channel has its own perks that some have to grasp for the time being I mean there's BritBox or BBC iPlayer but to those without these services have to view the bulk of content on this channel which appears as an absolute disaster.

Reminder: Cartoonito USA, Latin America And Africa To Broadcast Cartoon Salon's Silly Sundays By Late 2023 To Early 2024

WarnerMedia Kids & Family has greenlit Silly Sundays from Cartoon Saloon for its new Cartoonito preschool block on HBO Max and Cartooon Network. Created by Oscar®-nominated producer Nuria González Blanco (Late Afternoon), the endearing animated series follows cousins Sonia, Hugo and Mel on fun, unexpected adventures at their family get-togethers. Silly Sundays will debut in 2023 before making its international debut in LATAM and EMEA.

The world of Silly Sundays brings us back to our family days together, when school and work are out for the week and there is nothing scheduled except spending time with family and friends. A feel-good comedy series, full of heart and deeply rooted in familial themes, everything centers around Sonia, Hugo, Mel, Mom, Dad and Granny as they create unforgettable memories together during their weekend gatherings. The stories focus on their ups, their downs and mostly their fun times as they embrace every little moment together.

From Paul Young, Cartoon Saloon co-founder and producer: “I would like to thank WarnerMedia Kids & Family for choosing to partner with us on Silly Sundays! We are so delighted to be reunited with their talented team again for this new show that is going to be very funny and sunny, just like it’s creator Nuria Blanco. I’d like to send our very special thanks to Amy Friedman, Adina Pitt and Zia Bales for all their support and for being such believers in our work.”

Adina Pitt, Vice President, Partnerships, Acquisitions and Co-Productions for the Americas, WarnerMedia Kids and Family added: “Cartoon Saloon is an esteemed studio that masterfully approaches storytelling with love and humanity, and Silly Sundays is another great example of how the beloved studio perfectly captures the essence of family bonding.”

Nuria will direct alongside Fabian Erlinghäuser (Dorg Van Dango, Wolfwalkers, The Breadwinner). The show is developed and produced with assistance from Fís Éirean/Screen Ireland and Creative Europe.

Cartoon Saloon Brand Development will handle ancillary and merchandising and once again Cartoon Saloon will partner with Superights (Puffin Rock) for sales outside the WarnerMedia regions.

The series is currently in production at Cartoon Saloon’ studio in Kilkenny, Ireland. In addition to airing on Cartoonito across U.S., LATAM and EMEA, RTE will also broadcast Silly Sundays in Ireland.