Why Pilots Are Making a Comeback in the Streaming Era
Imagine this: Instead of committing tens of millions of dollars straight away to a full season of a TV show, you film one episode for a few million to see if it’s as good on-screen as it is on the page. If it is, you pick up more episodes. If it’s not, you move on. Sounds crazy, right?
Well, kids, gather round, and let’s reintroduce you to the concept of the “pilot.” The idea of shooting a tester episode before committing to paying for an entire season is back in vogue during these belt-tightening times. And streamers, which once prided themselves on being the anti-networks, are once again taking a cue from the way TV used to be made.
HBO Max has two pilots in contention: cop drama “American Blue” and the family drama “How to Survive Without Me.” Sarah Aubrey, head of original programming for HBO Max, says that her team is still highly selective when it comes to pilot orders, but the success of “The Pitt” — which has been renewed for a third season — was a big motivating factor for recent ones: “[It’s] born out of a desire to have shows with more episodes that return annually,” she says.
Hulu, meanwhile, has several high-profile pilots in the works, including the drama “Foster Dade” from Greg Berlanti and Bash Doran. The streamer also has Ryan Coogler’s “X-Files” reboot, with Danielle Deadwyler and Himesh Patel in a new iteration of the beloved paranormal procedural. “Coogler’s ‘X-Files’ is definitely at the top of my list,” one TV lit agent tells Variety. “He is absolutely on fire right now, and that IP has such a rabid fan base.”
On the broadcast side, Variety previously reported on NBC’s mission to reintroduce pilots to the TV ecosystem. The network has commissioned eight pilots in its biggest return to a traditional pilot season in years. Leading the crop is the reboot of “The Rockford Files,” with David Boreanaz in the lead role, which has generated buzz since it was announced.
Pilots have served a vital function practically since TV was invented. They give networks, studios and even creators the chance to make adjustments on a show before barreling headlong into full-scale production.
But when the streaming arms race for talent was in full swing in the 2010s, pilots mostly fell by the wayside as fierce competition led to straight-to-series orders — handed out like Ted Lasso dispensing pun-heavy pearls of wisdom.
“We all had such strong appetites in that gold-rush period,” says Simran Sethi, president of scripted programming at Hulu Originals, ABC Entertainment and Freeform.
Now, falling episodic budgets and lower overall production have spurred those at the top to rethink how to approach pickups — thus the increase in pilot orders, both in streaming and at the broadcast networks.
“I think that what we all learned with this adjustment to a slightly different volume is being a little bit more steady and focused on these bets that we’re making to really set ourselves up for long-running success,” Sethi says.
The shift in strategy is already bearing fruit. Netflix picked up a sequel series to “A Different World” in 2025 after giving the project one of the only pilot orders in the streamer’s history. Hulu ordered its upcoming “Prison Break” reboot from Elgin James and the drama “Phony,” starring Connie Britton and Sam Nivola, following pilot orders. And FX, long an advocate for pilots, recently picked up a “Snowfall” spinoff and the Peter Gould drama “Disinherited” off pilot orders.
Does this mean we’ll see a return to a time of 100-plus pilot orders in a given year? Don’t count on it.
“It’s really for these shows where we’re in a certain budget model and trying to build a system that can sustain 15 episodes coming back annually,” Aubrey says. “Once you get up to a certain price point, it doesn’t really make sense financially for a really big effects-heavy show to make a pilot.”
Well, kids, gather round, and let’s reintroduce you to the concept of the “pilot.” The idea of shooting a tester episode before committing to paying for an entire season is back in vogue during these belt-tightening times. And streamers, which once prided themselves on being the anti-networks, are once again taking a cue from the way TV used to be made.
HBO Max has two pilots in contention: cop drama “American Blue” and the family drama “How to Survive Without Me.” Sarah Aubrey, head of original programming for HBO Max, says that her team is still highly selective when it comes to pilot orders, but the success of “The Pitt” — which has been renewed for a third season — was a big motivating factor for recent ones: “[It’s] born out of a desire to have shows with more episodes that return annually,” she says.
Hulu, meanwhile, has several high-profile pilots in the works, including the drama “Foster Dade” from Greg Berlanti and Bash Doran. The streamer also has Ryan Coogler’s “X-Files” reboot, with Danielle Deadwyler and Himesh Patel in a new iteration of the beloved paranormal procedural. “Coogler’s ‘X-Files’ is definitely at the top of my list,” one TV lit agent tells Variety. “He is absolutely on fire right now, and that IP has such a rabid fan base.”
On the broadcast side, Variety previously reported on NBC’s mission to reintroduce pilots to the TV ecosystem. The network has commissioned eight pilots in its biggest return to a traditional pilot season in years. Leading the crop is the reboot of “The Rockford Files,” with David Boreanaz in the lead role, which has generated buzz since it was announced.
Pilots have served a vital function practically since TV was invented. They give networks, studios and even creators the chance to make adjustments on a show before barreling headlong into full-scale production.
But when the streaming arms race for talent was in full swing in the 2010s, pilots mostly fell by the wayside as fierce competition led to straight-to-series orders — handed out like Ted Lasso dispensing pun-heavy pearls of wisdom.
“We all had such strong appetites in that gold-rush period,” says Simran Sethi, president of scripted programming at Hulu Originals, ABC Entertainment and Freeform.
Now, falling episodic budgets and lower overall production have spurred those at the top to rethink how to approach pickups — thus the increase in pilot orders, both in streaming and at the broadcast networks.
“I think that what we all learned with this adjustment to a slightly different volume is being a little bit more steady and focused on these bets that we’re making to really set ourselves up for long-running success,” Sethi says.
The shift in strategy is already bearing fruit. Netflix picked up a sequel series to “A Different World” in 2025 after giving the project one of the only pilot orders in the streamer’s history. Hulu ordered its upcoming “Prison Break” reboot from Elgin James and the drama “Phony,” starring Connie Britton and Sam Nivola, following pilot orders. And FX, long an advocate for pilots, recently picked up a “Snowfall” spinoff and the Peter Gould drama “Disinherited” off pilot orders.
Does this mean we’ll see a return to a time of 100-plus pilot orders in a given year? Don’t count on it.
“It’s really for these shows where we’re in a certain budget model and trying to build a system that can sustain 15 episodes coming back annually,” Aubrey says. “Once you get up to a certain price point, it doesn’t really make sense financially for a really big effects-heavy show to make a pilot.”