Acorn TV grows into key role for AMC Networks
Company using boutique programming approach to compete with big streamers
Known for her iconic title role in “Xena: Warrior Princess,” actor Lucy Lawless said she “got tired of sex and violence” a couple of years ago and took on the role of Alexa Crowe in the Acorn TV series “My Life Is Murder.”
There is not a bustier or sword in sight on the show, in which Lawless plays a restless police detective forced into retirement. She often wears an apron, bakes bread and talks to her cat.
“I wanted to challenge myself and do something in my own accent,” Lawless said from her home in Auckland, New Zealand, where the show’s second season was filmed. “People want to be friends with Alexa.”
Lawless’ breezy whodunit is the kind of video comfort food that fans of Acorn, the streaming service specializing in British dramas and other programs from overseas, expect — dialogue-driven shows with strong character development and satisfying resolutions. If there are a few scenes set in an English garden, even better.
“There are no antiheroes,” said Miguel Penella, president of streaming services for Acorn TV’s parent company, AMC Networks. “Our protagonists try to do the right thing under difficult circumstances.”
Now celebrating its 10th anniversary, Acorn TV has become a key piece of AMC Networks’ effort to gradually pivot from old-world cable to the new age of streaming. The home of cable channels AMC, BBC America and SundanceTV, AMC Networks is using its boutique approach to programming to compete with Netflix and other larger media conglomerates dominating the streaming arena.
Acorn was ready-made for the task when it was acquired by AMC in 2018. The company had a loyal customer base when it was Acorn Media, a direct marketer of VHS cassettes and later DVD releases of such British favorites as “Doc Martin” and “Foyle’s War,” the acclaimed series about a detective working cases during World War II.
When Acorn executives saw home video consumers shifting from physical media to streaming in 2007 with the emergence of Netflix and Apple downloads, the company started planning for the technology shift that has transformed television viewing habits.
Acorn is now one of six streaming services from AMC Networks, which still sees the bulk of its nearly $3 billion in annual revenue come from cable subscriber fees and advertising. The company offers Sundance Now, which has films, dramas and true crime stories. Shudder is for horror fans. IFC Films Unlimited focuses on independent movies. ALLBLK is dedicated to works from Black creators. AMC+ offers a selection of shows such as “The Walking Dead” from the company’s cable channels.
Collectively, the services are projected to have more than 9 million subscribers by the end of 2021; AMC has a target of 20 million subscribers by 2025. AMC does not break out the figures or financial data for the individual services, but it said in its last earnings report that streaming subscriptions grew overall by 157% in 2020.
AMC executives do not expect its small services to displace big streamers such as Netflix or the Walt
Disney Co.’s Disney+. The goal is to be the streaming subscription consumers feel passionate enough about to keep along with one of the behemoths.
“As competition continues to ramp up in the streaming universe, it makes us even more organized around the principle that we likely won’t be your only streaming service, but we think we can be your favorite streaming service for a percentage of TV viewers,” said Ed Carroll, chief operating officer for AMC Networks.
While Acorn’s niche is well-defined, it has stepped up its investment in original programming after years of depending on acquisitions of established series and co-productions with other international broadcasters.
In recent years, it
launched original productions “Agatha Raisin,” starring Ashley Jensen as a crime-solving public relations specialist, and “Whitstable Pearl,” with Kerry Godliman as a single mom who starts a private detective agency.
The service, which offers 3,000 hours of programming in total, has six new original series launching this year and nine slated for 2022, including “Darby and Joan,” an eight-episode mystery set in Australia and starring Bryan Brown and Greta Scacchi.
“We know what our customers love, and there is no better way to give them what they love (than) to make it ourselves,” said Matt Graham, general manager for Acorn TV and Sundance Now.
Ownership gives Acorn the exclusive rights to
stream its programs in countries around the world, which will help accelerate its expansion. The service is now available in a dozen countries.
While Acorn made its bones with fans of British TV, it has expanded to include programs from Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, Australia and even non-English-speaking countries.
The service had to broaden its geographic boundaries after BritBox, a joint venture between the BBC and ITV, launched in 2017. Many of Acorn’s shows were ITV programs and were headed to the British programmer’s new service. PBS, the U.S. broadcast home of many British series that have appeared on Acorn, has also entered the streaming market.
Acorn executives take a handmade approach to developing shows, as data on subscribers and years of direct marketing experience in home video, give them a clear picture of their consumers. They tend to be older than 45, avid readers, well-educated and more affluent than the average consumer. They don’t need to see a lot of stunts or special effects, which helps Acorn keep the costs of its original programs in the range of $1 million an hour.
“We listen to our customers to make sure we’re getting it right,” Graham said.
Even the actors on the shows are asked to think about what viewers want.
“Dealing with Acorn is personal for me,” said Lawless. “There’s a covenant between the filmmakers, your audience and the streamer.”