Yahoo Finance Sony Pictures TV President Katherine Pope Still Bullish on Biz Amid Disruptions, Says ‘Creative Production, Budgetary Friction,’ a ‘Good Thing’
Sony Pictures Television president Katherine Pope is still bullish on the future of TV, saying that some of the recent disruptions rattling the global business will be good for the industry in the long haul and insisting that this sink-or-swim moment is the time for visionary creatives to shine.
“I think some of this constriction is going to be good, because I think it was very, very hard to break out when there were 750 shows premiering at any given time,” Pope said during a keynote address at Rome’s MIA Market on Wednesday. “I think this will actually be a good time.”
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In a wide-ranging conversation with MIA’s head of drama Paolo Ciccarelli, Pope acknowledged that pessimism persists in many quarters — something she partly attributed to “the hangover of the boom times” — but suggested the leaner business model of a previous TV era, when she was cutting her teeth at NBC and NBCUniversal, could help set the industry back on track.
“Some of that rigor that was in the old system is coming back. And I think it’s actually really healthy,” she said. “There’s a way for me that creative production, budgetary friction, is a good thing. It always yields unexpected answers.”
The veteran television executive recalled joining Sony in 2022 to head its TV division at “a super volatile time in the business,” amid a period of almost unprecedented course-correction and disruption to the TV industry globally.
Since stepping into her role after the departure of Jeff Frost, Pope has overseen the release of global hits including “The Boys,” “Outlander” and “The Last of Us,” crediting Sony for remaining “very singularly focused” amid the turbulence of recent years. “They didn’t get distracted by the streaming wars, didn’t take on a lot of things outside of the goal of making the best TV shows in the world,” she said.
Teasing anticipated upcoming projects such as the live-action Spider-Man series “Noir,” starring Nicolas Cage, which has been ordered to series at MGM+ and Prime Video, and the “Outlander” prequel “Blood of My Blood,” Pope pointed to a sprawling portfolio of IP across the company’s games, music and features divisions that has helped fuel the production of “loud, audacious, unique, specific, visionary shows.”
“In a world where creators, writers, directors, filmmakers are being sent so many messages and there’s so much disruption, it feels so hard to really understand what the next step is,” she said. “We offer a very clear path. We say we’re here to make TV shows, period. And if we do, if you’re successful, we’re successful.”
Speaking to a packed audience of largely European industry professionals in the Italian capital, Pope credited rival Netflix for “bringing international shows into the mainstream” and said she was hopeful about the prospects for local-language content, noting: “The world has gotten so small in that sense.”
While cost-cutting in Hollywood has invariably had an impact on Sony’s dealmaking overseas — with Pope acknowledging that “we think about the price point” more for international shows — she said that when it comes to negotiating with other buyers, the company’s choices are driven by what makes the most sense for each show, even if that means “we will sometimes make what is a lesser deal.”
“If we know it’s a place that that show is going to be protected, it’s going to have a longer life, [then] it’s not just about the up-front,” she said. “We’re trying to build a legacy here. We’re trying to build shows that will continue to be part of Sony’s library for the next hundred years. So we really have to be thoughtful about how we do all that.
“Sometimes, if it’s not the best deal, but it’s the right platform and it’s exactly where it should be for it to have a long life, we’ll take that deal,” she added.
It’s been a mixed bag of emotions so far at this year’s MIA Market, with at least one executive noting that “survive ‘til ’25” is still the mantra for many film and television professionals. But after five years of pandemic shutdowns, Hollywood strikes and streaming wars, Pope remained optimistic about the industry’s ability to weather any storm.
“We have signed up for a business of disruption. It’s constantly changing,” she said. “The minute you think you’ve figured it out, you get a huge curveball. And that’s what makes it fun. That’s what makes it exciting.”
Rome’s MIA Market takes place Oct. 14 – 18 in Rome.
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