Following in the footsteps of Netflix and NBC, Starz is releasing all episodes of its ballet-centric limited series Flesh and Bone and the third season of its historical drama Da Vinci’s Demons at once. Starz subscribers will be able to view them on Starz Play and Starz On Demand in the U.S. after the premieres of the first episodes of each series, on October 24 for Da Vinci’s Demons and November 8 for Flesh and Bone.
Netflix pioneered the binge-friendly approach with its original series House of Cards, Orange is the New Black and Hemlock Grove, and it’s starting to catch on as a viable approach for small-screen networks. NBC adopted the strategy for its period detective drama Aquarius earlier this year and found substantial success in attracting viewers to watch the full season on NBC.com. Now, Starz is taking a swing at it, banking on the mixture of existing Da Vinci’s Demons fans and curious Flesh and Bone samplers to test out binge-viewing with minimal risk.
Flesh and Bone, from Breaking Bad writer/executive producer Moira Walley-Beckett, goes inside the high-stakes world of competitive ballet. It centers on Claire (Sarah Hay), a talented but emotionally troubled young woman, as she attempts to survive her exposure to a New York City ballet company without cracking under the pressure. It was originally conceived as an on-going show but reduced to a limited series after execs and Walley-Beckett stepped back from the first season to consider what would make the most sense.
As for Da Vinci’s Demons, the David S. Goyer-created and exec-produced series has been off the air for 17 months. Fans are impatient for the 10-episode third season, which will wrap up existing storylines and serve as the show’s swan song.
Said David Baldwin, Starz’ EVP of Program Planning:
“The great and passionate followers of Da Vinci’s Demons have been waiting since the spring of last year for new episodes, while the gritty world of ballet as depicted in the Flesh and Bone limited series is must-see television for fans of the genre and great television alike. Both series are engaging and well-suited for a binge viewing experiment.”
