TCA: FX Honcho Addresses Louis C.K., the Disney Purchase and the Future of ‘Fargo’
Anarchy reigns again. Sort of.
Today in Pasadena, CEO of FX Networks and FX Productions John Landgraf took the stage at the annual Television Critics Association (TCA) winter press tour to formally announced the first-season order for Mayans MC and then face questions from members of the country’s pickiest viewers—critics.
After opening remarks about the rise of informational technology that cited social media’s ability to “elevate voices that need to be heard” and ones that “have nothing to say,” Landgraf gave props to TV’s embrace of novelistic approaches in shows like Netflix’s The Crown, as well as FX’s own American Crime Story and Trust, then ran through a series of slides about 2017’s 487 scripted shows. This not only allowed Landgraf to expand on the growing wave of quality content on streaming services, it also gave him the chance to rightfully celebrate the critical and ratings successes of his network’s Feud, Legion, Snowfall and Taboo. which were partly responsible for landing FX among the most-included programming in critics’ year-end Best Of lists.
Of course, the biggest issue within the ballroom at the Langham Hotel was the issue of Louis C.K.’s sexual misconduct and the network’s eventual decision to sever ties with their frequent collaborator. Landgraf stated that the move came after the comic confessed to multiple allegations, but that the network had performed their own internal investigation and found no evidence of misconduct on the comic’s five shows during his eight years at the network. That said, Landgraf confirmed that C.K. would not be involved in “any more FX shows,” including Better Things.
On the Disney front, Landgraf singled out the Mouse House’s acquisitions of Pixar and other studios that flourished after the sale went through, and he has high hopes of being part of the larger plan as FX brings something unique and different to the table. In fact, Landgraf pointed out that he has no counterpart at Disney as of now. He was also optimistic that there would be minimal impact on the network’s creative forces by the new owners. “We can’t do what we do if we’re not allowed to maintain our culture,” he said.
Unfortunately, when it came to what we should expect in 2018 from their current slate, Landgraf had no info on the new season of American Horror Story or the Hurricane Katrina installment of American Crime Story, which was delayed last year following a pivot in critical direction. In addition, Landgraf said that the next cycle of ”the very busy” Noah Hawley’s Fargo would likely arrive in 2019.
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