Blumhouse Productions is brining its micro-budget model to television.
The studio behind the Paranormal Activity and The Purge film franchises has signed a multi-year pact with Universal Cable Productions to create both scripted and non-scripted programming using the financial and creative structure that Blumhouse has implemented in its feature films.
As part of the deal, NBCU cable nets Syfy and USA have each given Blumhouse blind series commitments.
The plan is to create an entire season of a scripted series for the average production cost of a traditional cable pilot. This new model involves low upfront production costs including no fee for Blumhouse coupled with performance-based incentives, which will be triggered by a additional season pickups.
Using this model, Blumhouse's films have grossed more than $1.4 billion worldwide on combined budgets under $45 million.
“When we launched our television business, one of our goals was to try and build on what we have done in film - keeping budgets low to give storytellers creative freedom and to increase profits,” said Blumhouse founder and CEO Jason Blum.
This is the first deal under the first-look agreement that Blumhouse signed with NBCUniversal. The micro-budget deal is exclusive to UCP.
This is the latest expansion into TV for the studio, which includes Syfy miniseries Ascension; South of Hell at WE tv, and MTV's Eye Candy. Blum also executive produced the upcoming HBO documentary series The Jinx: The Life and Deaths of Robert Durst.
