AMC Networks Inc. has acquired a minority ownership stake in Funny Or Die. That’s good news for AMC cable channel IFC, which can now double down on its ongoing collaboration with the Will Ferrell-Adam McKay digital comedy platform.
IFC and FoD most recently worked together on upcoming Hank Azaria series “Brockmire.” Pictured above, the project began as a Funny Or Die short — it will soon premiere as an actual cable TV series. More of that may happen, with IFC eyeing existing Funny Or Die properties, though this deal is more focused on creating new content together, TheWrap is told.
Plus, there will probably be Funny Or Die-branded programming blocks on IFC. That said, Funny Or Die will continue to operate independently, so it can still work with other distributors, networks and studios.
IFC President Jennifer Caserta is set to join the Funny Or Die board. TheWrap spoke with both her and Funny Or Die CEO Mike Farah about the deal this morning.
“We couldn’t think of a better brand that is more perfectly aligned to work with IFC — our sensibility, our culture,” Caserta told us. “It means being able to explore different and unique and interesting things that we’ve been doing already … not just on the linear television network, but in the digital space.”
Farah echoed Caserta’s sentiment, adding: “Our core business [has] and always will be digital — and we’re really proud of that — but … [IFC is] really the perfect partner to accelerate growth in TV.”
This whole thing essentially kicked off with Will Ferrell’s ridiculous “Spoils of Babylon”/”Spoils Before Dying” — but it doesn’t mean the deal will extend that property. We asked Caserta if they’re doing a third run together to mark the acquisition.
“We’re not, and it’s just because we developed a franchise that Funny Or Die presented to us,” she said. “And we did our first run and then we did our subsequent series — but there was never a plan to do a third installment.”
Caserta concluded: “That’s not to say that in the future we couldn’t because as you know, in the wild world of the ‘Spoils’ franchise anything could happen, but that was not contemplated.”