Vanessa Agabo-Davalos has spent hours watching the dystopian drama “Squid Recreation” on Netflix. However nothing might put together the 21-year-old faculty pupil for seeing one of many present’s actors stroll the crimson carpet a couple of toes in entrance of her.
She discovered herself starstruck within the presence of Kang Ae-sim, who portrays Geum-ja (Participant 149) on the South Korean thriller. All of the extra so once they snapped a photograph collectively.
“You neglect every part. You neglect how you can discuss — it’s similar to ‘Wow, I noticed you on TV,’” mentioned Agabo-Davalos, who traveled an hour from the Inland Empire and might’t wait to see the ultimate season this month. “I really feel prefer it’s a dream come true for those that basically loved these exhibits.”
She was among the many greater than 9,500 Netflix followers who gathered Saturday on the Kia Discussion board in Inglewood for Netflix‘s Tudum reside occasion, an hours-long extravaganza meant to hype up audiences for upcoming collection, films and returning franchises.
Individuals traveled from all around the world to have a good time their love for exhibits together with “,” Addams Household collection “Wednesday” and sci-fi present “Stranger Issues.”
Throughout Netflix’s variety-show like program onstage on the famed venue, the corporate confirmed off how its laptop animated model of Tony Tony Chopper, a toddler-sized reindeer-boy character within the reside motion pirate collection “One Piece,” would seem within the upcoming season.
Oscar-winning director Guillermo del Toro unveiled a brand new teaser trailer for his November Netflix film, “Frankenstein,” starring Oscar Isaac and Mia Goth, who each appeared onstage with the filmmaker. Followers additionally noticed the primary six minutes of the primary episode of Season 2 of “Wednesday,” which can be launched in August.
The occasion, named after the sound that performs earlier than a Netflix program begins (“tuh-dum”), was a part of Netflix’s ongoing effort to harness the keenness its viewers have for its hottest packages and encourage them to maintain streaming.
“It’s about celebrating followers and giving one thing again to them,” Netflix’s Chief Advertising and marketing Officer Marian Lee instructed The Occasions after the occasion. “After all it is usually about selling … we now have an enormous slate arising.”
Netflix hosted the primary Tudum occasion in 2020 in São Paulo, which got here from the corporate’s Brazil group, which had an concept for an occasion that rewarded the streamer’s followers of younger grownup exhibits. That later led to Tudum evolving into totally different codecs together with festivals and livestreams, occasions that have been extra like a fan conference.
In 2023, Netflix held Tudum once more in São Paulo, drawing greater than 35,000 attendees and greater than 78 million views via Netflix’s social channels.
However Saturday’s festivities in Inglewood took Netflix model promotion to a brand new degree.
It was the primary time Tudum was livestreamed straight on Netflix, quite than on YouTube or social media retailers. The occasion performed like a roughly two-hour reside selection present, that includes “ask me something” segments, in addition to performances from music artists together with Girl Gaga, who seems within the subsequent season of “Wednesday.”
There was loads of cross promotion of Netflix content material in the course of the present, as talked about why individuals ought to tune into their weekly reside present on the platform, whereas additionally talking about their love for “,” primarily based on manga.
Tudum host Sofia Carson touted her upcoming Netflix film, “My Oxford 12 months,” which additionally stars Corey Mylchreest, recognized for portraying King George III in Georgian period romance collection “” from the “Bridgerton” universe. ‘s Cookie Monster additionally made an with actors Ben Affleck and Matt Damon, who star within the new Netflix film “The RIP.”
“I don’t assume one other studio can pull this off in the way in which that we did,” Lee mentioned. “Fandoms could be distinctive and distinct. They’re placing all these followers in a room collectively, WWE followers subsequent to [mystery movie] ‘’ followers subsequent to Girl Gaga followers for ‘.’ That’s an unbelievable achievement. That’s one thing solely Netflix can do.”
To some individuals, Tudum is a web page borrowed from Walt Disney Co., which hosts the biennial in Anaheim, pulling collectively disparate fandoms (Disney princesses, Marvel, Pixar, Star Wars) to converge in the identical place. It raises the query: Does Netflix, a streaming service that produces exhibits from nearly each style for nearly each type of viewers, have followers in the identical method that Disney does?
Through the years, Netflix has expanded its reside occasions and in-person experiences to maintain viewers engaged. These have included “Bridgerton” Netflix-themed and retail shops promoting primarily based on “Stranger Issues” and different exhibits.
Lee declined to say how a lot Netflix spent on the occasion. Some followers purchased tickets, starting from $25 to $75, whereas others mentioned they scored free tickets. Netflix mentioned tickets offered out in a few week.
Netflix doesn’t have iconic animated characters like Mickey Mouse or storied franchises like “Star Wars” or Marvel. However Netflix’s technique is to have one thing for everybody, and due to that, individuals are reluctant to give up it, business observers say, whilst financial anxieties run rampant.
“That’s the aggressive benefit of Netflix,” mentioned Larry Vincent, a advertising and marketing professor at USC Marshall College of Enterprise. “It actually has grow to be the massive tent of streaming. They’ve invested fairly considerably to develop a stockpile of content material.”
The streamer mentioned final yr it had greater than globally. On Saturday, the attendees mirrored that expansive viewers.
Followers dressed up as their favourite characters from Netflix exhibits. Individuals wore black attire just like Wednesday’s apparel, straw hats in assist of “One Piece” and inexperienced tracksuits like those gamers put on within the lethal “Squid Recreation.”
When Cookie Monster appeared behind a DJ sales space on the “N” formed crimson carpet to sing “‘C’ is for Cookie,” adults in “Squid Recreation” tracksuits joined within the refrain.
“It’s all-encompassing and world and passionate,” Tudum host Carson, recognized for starring in Netflix films together with “Carry-On” and “Purple Hearts,” mentioned in an interview after the occasion ended. “It’s actually extraordinary to really feel the love from each single a part of the world — it crosses languages, it crosses cultures.”
Shaheidi Jimenez, 21, got here to the Netflix occasion as a fan of “Wednesday” and “Squid Recreation.” She hadn’t watched “,” however seeing the screaming followers for the present’s actors on the crimson carpet made her extra curious in regards to the sci-fi collection.
“After I see the forged, it makes me need to watch it now,” Jimenez mentioned. “I’m accustomed to them extra. It makes me need to watch the present and possibly get into it.”
