There’s a lot of talk about the increasingly bloated budgets of blockbuster streaming movies and TV shows, with megacorps throwing money at the screen to try to produce hits, while rarely buying actual quality.
Game of Thrones was throwing $15 million at each episode by the end of the series (and the earlier, cheaper seasons were better). But more recently, we’ve heard about Netflix spending $200 million on its Gray Man original action thriller. Marvel spending $212 million on Secret Invasion. Amazon reportedly spending $300 million and $1 billion on Citadel and Rings of Power respectively.
But in that context, I would consider Apple TV+’s Foundation one of the most impressive shows on TV. Season 2 has arrived as of a few weeks back, showing story improvements from season 1. But it’s the fact that this show looks like a million dollars, that’s the most significant. But in this instance, the more apt phrasing is probably Amazon’s billion dollars.
The budget for season 1 of Foundation was just $45 million, a multiple of what a few of horror films might cost. While it’s possible season 2’s budget has increased somewhat, it is still unlikely to be near any of these other shows.
The show has produced sweeping, futuristic cityscapes when we are visiting Empire. It has desolate, gorgeous landscapes for Foundation itself and other nearby planets. Action sequences, space battles. It’s the best looking sci-fi series since perhaps The Expanse, though I’d argue perhaps even more so. This is approaching being on par with Dune, which was made for $165 million (though sure, Denis Villeneuve’s cinematic eye is unmatched).
The show also benefits from avoiding huge movie stars in its cast. Of course there’s talent, namely Chernobyl’s Jared Harris and Halt and Catch Fire’s Lee Pace, but it’s not say, Ryan Gosling or Priyanka Chopra, much flashier, widely-known stars. But I think that works to the series’ benefit, both in terms of budget and immersion.
Foundation joins Silo and For All Mankind in Apple’s trilogy of excellent sci-fi series, a genre that most other series seem desperate to avoid (outside of say, Stranger Things). It’s not clear how much seasons of Silo and For All Mankind cost, but I’d be amazed if they weren’t on par, or even much lower than Foundation, given their subject matter.
It remains mystifying to me why Apple TV+ is seemingly one of the smallest streaming services out there despite an insane batting average, and the two trillion dollar company managing smaller budgets excellently. In any case, watch those three shows I mentioned, and you’ll see exactly what I mean.
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Pick up my sci-fi novels the Herokiller series and The Earthborn Trilogy.
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