The long-gestating take on Brian K. Vaughan’s beloved comic series and the anthology spinoff will no longer air on the linear cable network.
Two more high-profile scripted originals are moving from FX’s linear network to its streaming hub, FX on Hulu.
Y: The Last Man and Ryan Murphy’s anthology spinoff American Horror Stories will no longer debut on the Disney-backed basic cable network and will instead run exclusively on FX on Hulu.
Established last year, FX on Hulu is part of a larger strategy at Disney to prioritize digital platforms at the conglomerate with Mrs. America and Devs part of the four-show initial slate. Y: The Last Man, based on Brian K. Vaughan’s beloved comic series, and the weekly anthology spinoff American Horror Stories join previously announced limited series A Teacher, starring Nick Robinson and Kate Mara, and Jeff Bridges drama The Old Man as FX on Hulu continues to plot its future.
The news was announced Monday as part of Hulu’s NewFronts presentation to Madison Avenue ad buyers, in which the Disney-backed streamer touted FX on Hulu’s engagement. Since its launch in March with Devs, the channel — which also boasts more than 1,600 episodes from FX’s critically acclaimed originals library — the streamer says more than 50 percent of its subscribers have engaged with the programming hub. Additionally, the streamer noted that the digital offering has expanded FX’s reach by 130 percent. (Hulu, like other streamers, does not release traditional viewership data.)
When then-Disney CEO Bob Iger announced FX on Hulu in November, sources told The Hollywood Reporter that a third of Hulu’s scripted originals would be supplied by FX in 2020 and 2021. The move is part of a larger push by legacy companies to better position themselves for the streaming era as online video subscriptions continue to grow (and as consumers continue to cut the cable cord).
While Hulu execs oversee their slate of originals, including The Handmaid’s Tale and Ramy, FX CEO John Landgraf and his team oversee all FX on Hulu originals. To that end, Devs and Mrs. America will be credited to FX for all awards consideration as both series were developed by Landgraf and company.
The move is the latest chapter in a long journey to bring Y: The Last Man to the screen. The series recast its leading man in February before returning to production that was, like scores of others, shut down amid the novel coronavirus pandemic. The drama has also changed showrunners since it was first put in development at FX back in 2015. Before that, creator Vaughan fought to get rights to his comic back after several unsuccessful attempts by Warners-backed New Line to bring it to the big screen that dated back to 2007. Diane Lane, Ben Schnetzer, Imogen Poots, Lashana Lynch, Juliana Canfield, Elliot Fletcher, Marin Ireland and Amber Tamblyn star in the series from showrunner Eliza Clark.
American Horror Stories, meanwhile, was picked up to series in May at FX and will feature a different horror story in each episode. The flagship anthology, which tells a new story each season, will return for its 10th round in 2021. Hulu has streaming rights to the flagship. Additional details about the episodic anthology continue to be kept under wraps.
Hulu also on Monday revealed scripted series including the new season of The Handmaid’s Tale, Amy Schumer’s Love, Beth and Kate McKinnon’s Elizabeth Holmes limited series The Dropout will all move from their planned 2020 launches to 2021. Additionally, Hulu’s “Huluween” programming block will return in the fall with titles including features Books of Blood and Bad Hair as well as Marvel drama Helstrom and anthology Monsterland.
