Film and TV execs rarely admit the hits they let slip through their fingers, but Amazon Studios boss Jen Salke did just that on Wednesday.
Speaking to James Corden in a special session at the Edinburgh TV Festival, Salke revealed that the “one that got away” was one of the most critically acclaimed dramas over the last year, but one that ended up on HBO.
“We tried hard to get Mare of Easttown but we lost it in the negotiation,” she said. “I did look back on what our process was going through that, because I really, really loved the show and I’m such a fan of Kate [Winslet]’s and I would be proud to have it on the service.”
Salke used her first appearance at the festival — which this year is holding a hybrid physical/online event — to discuss the “next change” for Amazon Studios, which she said would heavily lean on its feature film output.
“I think you’re going to see an acceleration of our movie output all over the world, not only these big original movies, but the kinds of films that are really specific, very artist-driven and very impactful for us,” she said, pointing to Sound of Metal, One Night in Miami and Sylvie’s Love as examples.
“So you’re going to see us lean into a bigger movie strategy of various types of content — and that will be global. So stay tuned for international growth, which is coming — the teams are building, the relationships are growing, the content is flourishing and more interesting and exciting every day.”
