Alex Garland, a modern-day genius, has created a Devs, a new series that premiered on Fox, and somewhat officially made the switch from film to television. This switch shows a lot — about the film industry, about the rise of television, and about creative freedom. Let’s break it down.

A quick summary of Alex Garland.

A writer turned screenwriter turned filmmaker. Garland rose to fame with his novel The Beach; afterwards, he wrote 28 Days Later, Sunshine, Dredd, and more; and then he turned to filmmaking — a home, perhaps.

Garland wrote and directed Ex Machina in 2014 – a film we believe to be a pinnacle not only of the past decade, but of all time. In 2018, Garland wrote and directed Annihilation — another absolutely groundbreaking project that shined through mediocrity.

The man himself.

But it didn’t come without its problems.

For those of you who have seen Annihilation (or Ex Machina, for that matter, but especially Annihilation), you know that it isn’t for everyone. Garland has his own style, as any good filmmaker does, and likes things of a certain nature; the novelist explores philosophy, physics, morality, ethics, and many more generally quite heavy and untouched themes. His films require focus; and unfortunately (we’re saying this with no blame whatsoever), most moviegoers don’t go to the movies to focus.

Ex Machina was Alex Garland’s first feature and even it had its problems. Because of what the movie turned out to be (good?), Universal and Focus Features decided not to release it in the States and instead A24 (surprise, surprise) got the distributing rights.

Ex Machina still.

It was worse for Annihilation.

The word on the street is there was quite the production conflict regarding Annihilation. Paramount was said to distribute the film internationally, but backed out after completion. David Ellison, a Paramount exec and Annihilation producer, approached Netflix after test screenings saying that Annihilation was ‘too intellectual’ and ‘too complicated’ for the general audience. The film eventually released on 2000 screens in the US and none anywhere else.

Paramount approached Alex Garland first, though. They asked him to change the third act of the film; basically threatened him that if he doesn’t, the movie will not open internationally. Garland didn’t; he invoked his final cut rights and let the movie exist as intended. Absolute legend.

Annihilation still.

Garland has said:

On a more human, personal level, my filmmaking career [has been]: I’ve made something, I’ve given it to a distributor, and they say, ‘We don’t want to distribute this”. It’s basically been every film I’ve ever worked on. I just got sick of it… I thought maybe [film] isn’t the right space for me. Basically, it’s not mainstream. So I thought TV might be the right home.

So TV it is.

It’s very unfortunate that the film industry is such that a genius creator like Alex Garland has to turn away from it. A man with a voice, style, and fantastic storytelling capabilities. A man who literally made two of the best films of the decade as debut features. And the film industry is so brutal and commercial that he must, very unfortunately, step away.

But there’s hope.

In television. There’s hope — in television. Something we never thought would be the case 10 or 20 years ago. Garland’s new project, Devs, premiered on Fox almost a month ago. Look it up — it’s amazing, as expected. Garland has found a new home as a showrunner and series director and has become proof that this is truly the Golden Age of Television.

Devs still.

New series are produced every day. More money poured in them. Better quality. Better quality creators. Bigger names. Better names. Innovation, excitement, fresh stories. Different narratives, different ways of watching. A time of growth and experimentation. A time where great filmmakers find a new home.

Why are we telling you this?

Alex Garland’s move from film to television may be foreshadowing the future of the whole entertainment industry. A good, no, a great, filmmaker becomes a showrunner; because Fox gives him complete freedom and trust to tell his story the way he believes is right.

More will do this. More will follow Garland’s example. And films may become more and more corrupt, with less and less quality and artistic vision behind them; maybe. Nothing is certain for the film industry, but many things are certain for the television industry. One thing above all — it’s blowing up.

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