You knew Jon Stewart couldn’t stay out of the game too long. Or maybe he could only take so much of the farm life after leaving The Daily Show.
As first reported by Variety‘s Cynthia Littleton, Stewart has inked a four-year production deal with HBO during which he’ll create short-form digital content for the network. (Maybe former colleague John Oliver helped him land the gig.) Those videos will be available on digital services HBO Go and HBO Now, with new content available multiple times a day.
What that content will be is anyone’s guess. Perhaps Stewart will do an occasional commentary, though Oliver and Bill Maher effectively fill that space already. Short documentaries definitely seem like a possibility. Or, as CNN’s Bill Carter mentions, maybe Stewart could get into some short-form comedy like Jerry Seinfeld has done with his Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee web series.
Additionally, the production deal includes a first-look option for film and TV projects. That could mean Stewart has a home for his next movie. Following his directorial debut with Rosewater, many speculated that Stewart could go into filmmaking full-time. But Rosewater wasn’t a big theatrical success, and projects like that — along with longer-form documentaries — might find a better audience on HBO.
Re/code’s Peter Kafka also reports that Stewart’s new programming won’t only be available on HBO’s digital services. What about on the HBO cable networks, for those who haven’t cut the cord? According to Kafka, HBO’s contracts with cable providers require the network to offer content to those who buy subscriptions for the service. Though Stewart’s videos may not be on a HBO channel, per se, they will most likely be available on demand, though there’s no word yet on how soon that content would be available after debuting online.
[Variety]
