The creators of ‘Being Mary Jane’ and BET ‘The Game’, Salim and Mara Brock Akil are leaving the BET network for Warner Bros. Television.
Announced yesterday afternoon, Salim and Mara Brock Akil, the masterminds behind ‘Being Mary Jane’ and BET’s ‘The Game’ are ending their contract with BET and signing a deal with Warner Bros. Television
According to reports, Salim and Mar Brock Akil have inked a multiple-year deal with the WB via their Akil Productions, which will start May 2016, which is also happens to be when their agreement with BET ends.
The Akil production, “The Game” aired their series finale last night leaving BET with only one Akil production left, ‘Being Mary Jane’.
As Indiewire pointed out, what is BET going to do next?:
I have to wonder what BET’s plans are to replace the couple. I was under the impression that they would be to BET what Shonda Rhimes has become for ABC; or even what Tyler Perry has become for OWN. I expected a long term relationship, as they work together with BET brass to turn the network around, and build a cable TV powerhouse aimed at black audiences specifically. But I imagine this new deal at Warner Bros will provide them with the flexibility to diversify their efforts, as well as extend their reach. Although exact terms of the agreement aren’t revealed in any report I’ve come across; but as with past similar agreements, it will likely see the pair create TV content that will be produced and distributed via WBTV, which could land on any number of networks. For example, WBTV, itself part of Time Warner, serves as a television production arm of The CW Television Network, but also produces shows for other networks, such as “Shameless” on Showtime and “The Leftovers” on HBO (though Time Warner also owns HBO). An Akil Productions series on HBO certainly would be a good look, as the saying goes.
But, this is a major problem for Viacom, a TV network conglomerate that is struggling to reach the new generation of TV viewers, according to Bloomberg news.
The so-called MTV generation is older now, and no longer watches, as that network, once a jewel within Viacom’s media empire, is of really little influence now. After I read Bloomberg’s report, my immediate thought was that, BET may inevitably become Viacom’s salvation, since the network, seemingly undergoing a radical makeover, has a lot of potential ahead of it (it’s just getting started in terms of original scripted programming, and there’s a significant black audiences hungry for varied representations of themselves on the small and big screens), compared to Viacom’s other top holdings – MTV and VH1 notably – whose best days may be behind them.
But, maybe Viacom made the smart decision. BET’s ‘The Game’ was suffering some of the lowest ratings in history entering into their final season. In addition, ‘Being Mary Jane’s core audience dropped nearly 30% after the first season.
Viewership for the second season launch of “Being Mary Jane” fell off almost 30% from last season. The episode attracted 3.6 million viewers compared with the 5.2 million viewers who tuned in to last season’s premiere. [LA Times]
Therefore, Viacom representatives may have seen this as the future of all Akil Productions. BET’s ‘Being Mary Jane’ filmed in Atlanta, Georgia earlier this year. However, with a new contract deal with Warner Bros. Television, expect BET to pull the plug on the Gabrielle Union series.
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