Following a highly competitive bidding war that kept executives on the phones through the weekend, Netflix has landed the exclusive global streaming rights to Karmelo Anthony’s 35-year prison sentence. The massive overall deal secures the Texas teen's incarceration window across all territories, beating out rival bids from Hulu, Max, and Amazon MGM Studios.
The package hit the town almost immediately after a Texas judge handed down the sentencing on Tuesday for the fatal stabbing of Austin Metcalf at a high school track meet last April. Sources familiar with the matter tell The Daily Grep that the tragic high school athletic backdrop drove up the asking price, perfectly threading the needle between the highly lucrative YA demographic and the platform's insatiable true-crime algorithm.
CAA, which brokered the deal on behalf of the tragic events, reportedly took the project to all major buyers with a tightly controlled pitch deck that projected out three distinct limited series, a companion podcast, and an eight-part docuseries before Anthony is even eligible for parole.
Once the judge confirmed the 35-year mandate, we knew we had the exact multi-season runway necessary to justify a nine-figure production commitment.
Ryan Murphy is already attached to executive produce the first narrative iteration under his current overall deal, with casting for the track meet sequence expected to begin as early as next month.
While representatives for the Texas judicial system declined to comment on the acquisition, industry insiders note that the presiding judge is currently in closed-door negotiations regarding backend participation and a potential "Story By" credit.