The race is open between the networks to make the next "Game of Thrones".

Monday's "Game of Thrones" finale (local time) means that viewers will have their last glimpse of the blood and the battle of Westerosi that provoked it.

But in Hollywood, the battle is still so difficult. In progress. Even after House Lannister, Targaryen or Stark end up controlling the iron throne (or all of them, in a fatal mbad), premium television channels will continue the war, seeking a new show to lead the world. created by "Thrones".

Netflix, Apple, Amazon, and Showtime are feverishly striving to rebuild the scale, applause, relevance, and – do not underestimate – the properties of the HBO smash that attracts subscribers.

"An arms race is currently taking place for event television," said an experienced television executive who spent years on a high-end platform, using the term "expensive and heavy show". Location with large canvas intrigues ".

"There could be several winners, or there could be no winner."

Netflix has "The Witcher", based on a supernatural-monster literary franchise; Showtime has "Halo", based on one of the most popular video game series of all time. Amazon is trying to bring viewers back to the county with "The Lord of the Rings"; Apple hopes to finally give life to the vast "Foundation" of Isaac Asimov. And HBO returns to the well by developing a prequel "Game of Thrones" with Naomi Watts.

The rush does not just happen because the end of "Thrones" will leave a large audience looking for their next epic (or, lately, a target for the social media scandal) .

For networks, it's to take advantage of a new set of rules. Swords-and-scepters was once a neglected material: an adaptation of Tolkien to the movies every two or three years and, at best, a niche show on weekly television.

Yet, "Thrones" has made the dragon lay the eggs of gold – it has attracted an average of 18 million viewers per episode this season, more than 50% more than the last episode of "The Sopranos" ". HBO Now, the number of subscribers has increased by 91% during the seventh season

. This success has changed the way leaders think, increasing acceptable risks and price tags for a new series of genres. (Budgets for an episode of "Thrones" can now reach more than $ 10 million, many times more than the most prestigious series.) Their logic is that it's not just worth doing shows in categories like fantasy and science fiction – that's worth it to spend a lot for them too.

Given how much a hit can be flared in the current television crowd, it means that many executives could soon take a bath.

Consumers? They could swim in the content of a television show.

The Battle Begins

David Nevins seemed a little nervous.

The executive of CBS and Showtime, the longtime rival of the pay-TV channel of HBO, had just completed the video game adaptation "Halo" to reporters at a Beverly hotel Hills last summer.

He did not give much details about the science fiction show, about an interstellar war between humans and the extraterrestrial supergroup The Covenant. But journalists knew the issues.

"Will this be your" Game of Thrones? "A reporter asked Nevins.

" This will be our "halo", he said, then he made a distinction. "It's a different kind – futuristic science fiction, based on space, not fantasy."

Whatever it is, in the room, it's Bought it.

"Halo" is a spiritual heir to "Thrones". He has the struggle for power, the show and the double crossing. Although drawn from a video game, it contains juicy central characters. and the names of the "Thrones" dimensions (Master Chief John-117, The Arbiter).

But this also makes it a good candidate for failure – with a sprawling mythology through an original trilogy, a second trilogy, fallout, In novels and illustrated novels, it is possible that the source material too heavy for eight-hour episodes.

This is partly why "Halo" The development lasts for almost six years. Leading filmmakers such as District 9's Neill Blomkamp and Guillermo Del Toro each took a look and finally left. After having invited famous television writer Kyle Killen to play in the showrunner, the network hired last month a second showrunner, Steven Kane, of "The Last Ship" of TNT. But he is still looking for key cast members and a production start date.

Gary Levine, co-president of Showtime for entertainment activities, talks about it eagerly. He says the key is perhaps to find people not known for science fiction, as "Thrones" found his voice with two creators not known for fantasy.

"Our hopes and dreams are that it will have a huge appeal for" Halo "Fans and Calls for Theater Fans," said Levine.

Making Psychohistory

C & # 39 is a sign of these television episodes, the trilogy "Foundation" which was once a movie attempt now begins a new life as a TV show – and Apple, with drawings on HBO-like dominance.

The Core material has been tried as film to Fox, Warner Bros. and Sony, the license has gone from everywhere as a dog-eared copy of "The Fountainhead" in a college dormitory.

It's easy to understand why: the literary work is a clbadic, not just a gender exercise, but a deep contemplation of the politics of global power via psychohistory Empires go up and down in "Foundation" so as to give Westeros a look of elections to the council

And yet, this same sprawling quality explains why the show still has not found the airwaves. Apple could face a similar challenge to Showtime with its series of events: the problem of too much myth. Neither Apple nor Showtime could comment on their bets.

That is why, despite the green light of the writers and financial producer, "Foundation" lacks casting and start date. The show had barely been mentioned during the prestigious presentation of the service in March.

"There are many reasons why this type of programming has remained mostly in the film," said a veteran television producer who has been trying to get a number of programs out of the box. events on the ground. "Consumers have generally wanted to see these kinds of things in movie theaters, and creative elements can be difficult to incorporate even in a series of multiple episodes."

Rolling Dough

In a certain way, the battle to follow "Game Thrones" looks a lot like the game of thrones itself: you win or you die. There is no middle ground.

Spending as much for a series raises the bar for profit and the number of viewers, and shows that do not reach can fail badly.

But these risks do not deter some players – and maybe even motivate them.

In 2017, Amazon paid a license of US $ 250 million for the "Lord of The Rings" license. For a license. (Underlying material rights tend to be at most a few million.) Production costs, by some estimates, could bring the issue to 1 billion US dollars.

Amazon is planning a precedent for the events of the "original Lord." of the Rings ", hiring writers of" Star Trek "and targeting the series for 2021. (The general manager of Amazon, Jeff Bezos, is owner of the Washington Post.)

" We feel like Frodo, Leaving Shire, with great responsibility in our care – it's the beginning of the adventure of a lifetime, "Jennifer Salke, head of Amazon Studios, hired in 2018, recently told reporters.

Frodo's adventure also included captivity at the hands of a giant spider and a stalker who eventually bit the annulus of the hobbit. Observers also see a lot of risks for Amazon. [19659044] Elijah Wood in the role of Frodo in a scene from the film version of The Lord of the Rings Photo / File ” src=”data:image/png;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPAAAOrq6v///yH5BAAAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw==” data-srcset=”//www.nzherald.co.nz/resizer/GI0l-N_b4Gtjsuh512q9_Epj5J0=/320×181/smart/filters:quality(70)/arc-anglerfish-syd-prod-nzme.s3.amazonaws.com/public/TNS6L5IDRJBV5MSM7IDQHF37VY.jpg 320w,//www.nzherald.co.nz/resizer/Liw5tu09HnZC1UDcgMb8huoPkMY=/375×212/smart/filters:quality(70)/arc-anglerfish-syd-prod-nzme.s3.amazonaws.com/public/TNS6L5IDRJBV5MSM7IDQHF37VY.jpg 375w,//www.nzherald.co.nz/resizer/Ti5_w3U0XDkdRLdPXKHzU8nXOZE=/620×351/smart/filters:quality(70)/arc-anglerfish-syd-prod-nzme.s3.amazonaws.com/public/TNS6L5IDRJBV5MSM7IDQHF37VY.jpg 620w”/>