Get Ready to Stream a 'Sweet' Show
Third Season of Netflix's 'Sweet Magnolias' Features Brevard Actress Ella Grace Helton
When is the last time you asked a friend or posted on social media seeking recommendations for a new show to watch? With the advent of streaming, so much has shifted in our entertainment consumption habits and in how studios and streamers churn out content. The two are obviously intertwined, and the changes and unpredictability make for a volatile environment for those trying to earn a living in the industry — and for those of us watching.
I can use my own daughter, Ella Grace Helton’s, child acting career to loosely guide us along a discussion of some of the entertainment industry evolution. Her latest project to come to screen is the third season of the popular Netflix family drama “Sweet Magnolias,” launching July 20. How do I know it’s popular? It got a third season! Which is a miracle in this era of “television.”
I put that word in quotes because many of us are not watching shows on the actual television anymore. At least in our house, shows tend to get streamed on large monitors or laptops. Sometimes on tablets. And occasionally even on phones.
Whenever you do seek out a new show, how hesitant are you to get invested — fearful it might get canceled before it’s given a chance to come to a proper conclusion? It’s more than a common discussion these days, hearing someone bitter that they got sucked into the plot and started rooting for the characters just to have their new favorite fictional world blacked out. Heck, shows have had their renewals announced and not long after, had that decision reversed.
There are no guarantees in entertainment. It’s rare for a show to run multiple seasons. Getting a second season these days, especially on the streaming platforms, is a major victory. Anything beyond that is a miracle.
When we shared the news that Ella is now part of the “Sweet Magnolias” season 3 cast (a recast of the role of Katie Townsend), it was amazing how many people said it is one of their favorite shows. It’s no surprise, as the show is wholesome, compelling and touches on multi-generational family and social themes through masterful storytelling. Similar shows seem to have what’s considered longevity in today’s TV market.
As for those who hadn’t yet watched the show, many enthusiastically declared they were happy to have the recommendation of a good show to start, with the promising news that a third season is coming — and bonus, you know one of the actors!
In contrast, I’ll throw back to a true miracle, when Ella was fortunate to be part of the unique adventure of being a series regular on a network television show at the incredulous age of 6. The sitcom was called “United We Fall,” and it aired on ABC for one season during the summer of 2020, smack in the middle of COVID. But it was created and recorded prior to the pandemic, when Ella got to experience the dynamic energy of performing in front of a live studio audience. We invited friends and family to experience that with her.
But even by 2020, the trend of people making plans to be in front of their TV at a set time and day each week to catch new episodes was evolving. COVID pushed us all over the edge and into a new screen consumption diet. More, more and more, please, and now, now and now.
So the studios made a ton of content. Too much good stuff was spread across too many content providers to subscribe to. And then it seemed demand resulted in extreme volume, and that meant it wasn’t all such good stuff. Leading to a pullback of that content-creation machine and even more cancellations.
If you go back and read about the types of shows that got canned recently, it’s many in the sci-fi genre, and projects that come with higher visual effects costs.
So maybe there’s hope that family friendly storytelling like “Sweet Magnolias,” which celebrates everyday life themes in small-town America, will be given a chance to entertain audiences with more seasons. YOU can help that cause by streaming seasons 1 and 2, and then streaming the new episodes when they drop July 20. Or soon after. But within the first 28 days, because apparently that’s an important metric.
Ella comes in for episodes 5 through 10. And she had such a wonderful time with the amazing cast and crew. We’d love to see her go back and do it all again for a fourth season.
CONNECT
Follow Ella Grace Helton for updates on “Sweet Magnolias” and her other acting adventures:
EllaGraceHelton.com
Instagram: @adventuresofellagrace
Facebook: /adventuresofellagrace
Netflix launches season 3 of “Sweet Magnolias” on July 20.
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