Weekly: How to avoid ‘middle of the freeway’ drama

The creatives behind MGM+ Stephen King-inspired original The Institute have urged producers to “not be in the middle lane of the freeway” as they battle to stand out in the sea of premium scripted content. 

The Institute has become Amazon-owned MGM+’s best premiere ever since its launch last month and was recently renewed for a second series.  

Adapted from Stephen King’s novel of the same name, the MGM+ Studios-produced sci-fi thriller follows the story of teen genius Luke Ellis (Joe Freeman), who is kidnapped and awakens at The Institute – a facility full of similarly gifted children, who all got there the same way he did and who are all possessed of unusual abilities.  

Concurrently, in a nearby town, haunted former police officer Tim Jamieson (Ben Barnes) has come looking to start a new life, but the peace and quiet won’t last, and his and Luke’s world collide in unforeseen circumstances. Also involved is Weeds star Mary-Louise Parker who oversees the shadowy Institute. 

Speaking to Broadcast International ahead of its launch, director and exec producer Jack Bender, said: “I do believe that my choice, as an oeuvre – to sound pretentious for a moment – is always to be a little out of the box, to not be in the middle lane of the freeway.  

“There are a lot of shows that are very popular, in different genres, that are going right down the middle lane of the freeway. 

“And whatever [creative] rules we follow, and we have our own personal and professional ones, the bottom line is that you can pretty much do anything if you pull it off – if it’s good and somewhat original.”  

Bender didn’t divulge the “middle of the road” dramas on screens at present - “I don’t want to dish anybody,” he jokes - but argues it is “always better to be a little left or right lane.” 

Balancing act

Writer and EP Benjamin Cavell agreed with Bender’s assertion, also noting his colleague’s analogy of a “tightrope walk” when creating drama - being unique while retaining mainstream appeal, particularly with a show based around dark source material, typical of a King novel.  

“I don’t know if this is mainstream, but we were always very aware of making sure that the show was pleasurable from an audience point of view, that it had some levity, some triumph and enjoyment,” he said, adding that the appeal of the darker material could be reflective of “our taste as filmmakers.” 

Both Cavell and Bender have experience in broad appeal network and cable shows which ran for numerous series, such as SEAL Team and Under the Dome for CBS and ABC’s Alias and Lost, as well as FX’s Justified. 

“The book suggests a much larger world at the end of it and we talked to Stephen about the possibility of expanding that and he was on board”
Benjamin Cavell

While acknowledging that The Institute, like many streamer dramas, may not run for broadcast-style double-digit runs, the recommission is vindication of how they crafted the series, as well as their individual relationships with previous King adaptations.  

Besides Under the Dome, Bender worked on Mr. Mercedes (Audience Network), while Cavell wrote on The Stand (Paramount+/Starz).  

“The book suggests a much larger world at the end of it and we had we had talked to Stephen about the possibility that, in success, we would love to expand that - and he was on board with that from the beginning,” Cavell said.  

“It was always our hope and Stephen’s hope that people would would watch, and that therefore there would be demand for more.” 

But Bender added: “It’s not going to be on for 10 years. The world now, because there’s so much content, means you can do a show for three or four years and it can be a very fulfilling experience for everybody involved, including the audience.” 

Creative freedom

One of the show’s immediate strengths was the faith shown by MGM+, which the duo said had remained at arm’s length from the creative process.

The streamer, which was previously known as Epix, is the home for the series in the US, Germany, Italy, Spain, Netherlands, Belgium, Brazil, Mexico, Chile, Colombia and the UK. In the latter, the streamer is available as a bolt-on via Prime Video Channels.  

“MGM+ has a small stable of shows that we all want to continue to build and to do better, and Michael [Wright] does that as head of the studio. He’s bringing in more shows, creating some with more well-known actors. He was thrilled when Mary-Louise wanted to do our show,” Bender said.  

“You want as much success as you can have of course, but at the same time there’s only pressure to make it as good as it could be, working for Michael and that studio.  

“Whatever notes we may get on scripts or cuts or whatever, they’re either smart and help or they say you don’t need to do them. That’s not CBS, that’s not NBC or ABC, the old version of network television. One of the things that Under the Dome suffered from, in my opinion, was studio notes. 

“In this streaming world, some places are trusting the people who are running the shows to go down the road.” 

Cavell adds: “Michael Wright has been extremely generous and, quite frankly, is smart and confident enough to say: you guys know what you’re doing, this is good, go with it.”