YouTube has handed Liza on Demand, the half-hour comedy created by and starring Liza Koshy a third season and has ordered a David Blaine live special and a doc series about the world of women’s gymnastics.
Susanne Daniels, Global Head of Original Content at YouTube, announced the projects at the Winter TCA press tour, where YouTube Originals were promoting Paris Hilton documentary This Is Paris and learning series Creators for Change with Michelle Obama: Girls’ Education.
These orders come as the company moved from SVOD to AVOD earlier this year with logged-in YouTube customers will be able to watch the original series and specials, while YouTube Premium members will have ad-free access and be able to bine the series.
Liza on Demand, which launched its second season in September, follows the chaotic misadventures of Koshy’s eponymous character as she takes on various tasks and odd jobs, as she tries to get ahead in the gig economy. Featuring a young diverse cast, the freshman season took satirical stabs at topics including gender bias and romantic tropes. Season two will follow Liza’s misadventures as she takes on a new set of challenges. Travis Coles and Kimikp Glenn also star.
The series hails from Above Average Productions, a digital-first entertainment company founded in 2012 by Lorne Michaels’ Broadway Video. Koshy, who earlier teamed with YouTube on the 2016 holiday special Jingle Ballin’, executive produces alongside Deborah Kaplan, Harry Elfont and Courtney Carter. Sam Childs serves as producer.
Magician David Blaine is heading to YouTube with a live event. The company didn’t give many details but said that the special will be “lighter” and “brighter” than Blaine’s usual dark and mysterious stunts. A clip shown at TCA, where Blaine turned up, showed him jumping out of a plane.
Finally, YouTube Originals has greenlit a six-part documentary series, launching this summer, that goes behind the last 50 years of Women’s Gymnastics. It will feature interviews with prominent gymnasts and is produced by All3Media’s Main Event Media