Sci Fi TV Network Scorecard: Apple TV+, Paramount+, HBO Max, and Disney+

Network Scorecard: Scoring the networks based on their history of airing and supporting sci fi and fantasy television shows.

Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, and Hulu have been around for a while and each of those streaming services has produced some notable sci fi and fantasy originals as well non-genre entries (click on the links to see the individual scorecards for each). But those services are now getting some serious competition from the likes of Apple TV+, Paramount+ (formerly CBS All Access), HBO Max, Disney+, and more. The newer services have really only been in the game for a few years now, so it is hard to make a full assessment of them at this point. But following is a quick look at four of the bigger names right now.

Apple TV+

No matter what your opinion is on Apple products, if you are a sci fi fan you should be paying attention to the Apple TV+ streaming service (and you do not have to own an Apple product to subscribe to it). This one came out of the gate with the two notable sci fi entries For All Mankind and See as well as the supernatural drama Servant. It also has the adaptation of Isaac Asimov’s Foundation on the way as well as the original sci fi drama Invasion. And so far the streamer has invested heavily in its originals and has also been supportive of them.

I give Apple TV+ a score of 3 ½ on a scale of 1 to 5 (5 being the highest). The first three genre entries that it released have all been renewed through their third season, and from what I am hearing work has already begun on the second season of the upcoming Foundation. The only sci fi/fantasy series that has not made it past a first season so far is Amazing Stories and that might have been a rights issue (the supernatural drama Lisey’s Story was a mini-series). We don’t know yet if Apple TV+ will have the same three-to-four season wall we have seen from the Big Three streamers, but it does appear to be giving its originals time to tell their stories. If it continues along the same path for the next few years, its rating could rise higher.

Apple TV+ New Scripted Programming

Paramount+

This streaming service originally started as an offshoot of the CBS broadcast network known as CBS All Access. It has since changed its name to Paramount+ and expanded to include many properties from the Parmount studios umbrella. And sci Fi fans have a pretty good idea of what they will get from this streamer: Star Trek, Star Trek, and more Star Trek. This began with CBS All Access and continued after the name change with four active Trek shows (including Short Treks) and more on the way. The streamer also produced two seasons of a Twilight Zone reboot, The Stand mini-series, and it picked up the supernatural drama Evil from CBS, so it has a few other entries of interest to genre fans. But Star Trek is its flagship and it looks like it will remain that way for some time.

I give Paramount+ a score of 2 ½ on a scale of 1 to 5 (5 being the highest). It has been supportive of its Star Trek shows and it looks like Discovery could be headed to a fifth season (surpassing the three-to-four season wall which the streamer already did with its legal drama The Good Fight). But the cancellation of The Twilight Zone after two seasons came as somewhat of a surprise and Paramount+ seems to act more like a broadcast network when it comes to the renewal/cancellation decisions for non-Trek shows (with five of its originals cancelled after one or two seasons so far). CBS has been a genre-averse network for quite some time (you can see that network’s scorecard at this link), but Parmount+ might be more willing to consider sci fi entries going forward. Whether they will last very long there, though, remains to be seen.

Paramount+ New Scripted Programming

HBO Max and Disney+

Both of these streaming services are too new in the game to warrant a score at this point, but sci fi fans should definitely be paying close attention to them in the coming years. HBO Max is an offshoot of the HBO premium cable channel, and since it is owned by Warner Bros., it looks to go heavy on DC Comics-related shows. It already picked up Titans, Doom Patrol, Young Justice, and Harley Quinn from the now-defunct DC Universe streaming service (the latter two have not aired new seasons there yet), and it also has Justice League Dark, Green Lantern, and more in the works. Disney+ will be a regular landing place for MCU shows and it will also continue to expand the Star Wars Universe. And both streamers are throwing in some other genre entries like Raised by Wolves on HBO Max and The Mysterious Benedict Society on Disney+. I expect that both will continue to produce notable sci fi/fantasy shows in the years to come, and the early indication is that they are supportive of their originals.

HBO Max New Scripted Programming

Disney+ New Scripted Programming

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