Almost five years after Cindy Holland exited her post as head of originals for Netflix, she is in charge of another major streamer in her role as Chair of Direct-to-Consumer for Paramount, overseeing the newly acquired company’s streaming platforms, Paramount+ and Pluto TV.
During a press conference of Paramount’s new leadership following the Skydance merger held on the Paramount lot in Los Angeles, Holland made her first public comments about the original strategy for Paramount+.
“We want to entertain all audiences around the world on Paramount+ today,” she said. “We have a really great foundation, which is the Taylor Sheridan universe. We also have incredible CBS next-day, live sports, a lot from the cable networks, franchises like Star Trek, so many series. We’re seeking to expand that and make sure that we’re offering programming for everybody not just occasionally, not just for the one thing but hopefully, a daily habit for all audiences.”
Paramount CEO David Ellison stressed that the budget for streaming originals will be increased but would not specify by how much.
Paramount’s first major move for Paramount+ was not on the entertainment but on the live sports side with a seven-year $7.7 billion UFC deal. It does fit the male skew of many of Paramount+’s most succesful original series, like the Taylor Sheridan dramas or the Star Trek franchise. On the flip side, the CBS series, which stream on Paramount+ next day, have a female appeal.
Holland is known for her 18-year tenure at Netflix, including nine years as VP of Original Content, during which she spearheaded the streamer’s rise to a leading original programming player with shows such as House of Cards, Orange is the New Black, BoJack Horseman, Grace and Frankie, Narcos, Making a Murderer, Stranger Things, The Crown, Ozark, Big Mouth, Russian Doll, and The Queen’s Gambit.
Holland’s team is led by two executives she had worked with at Netflix and more recently at Sister: Efrain Miron who will serve as EVP, Head of Content Strategy & Licensing, DTC, and Jane Wiseman, EVP, Head of Originals, DTC.
Paramount+ has been largely in a holding pattern over the last year with no new series greenlights except for existing franchises such as Sheridan’s Yellowstone and Showtime’s Dexter and other series from Sheridan and his longtime collaborator David Glasser of 101 Studios.
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