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Netflix has ordered an untitled documentary about the Montreal Expos Major League Baseball club's departure from Canada nearly 20 years ago.
Jean-François Poisson will direct the film as part of a partnership with Montreal-based indie producer Attraction. Canada's Netflix also gave the green light as the streaming giant expands into sports-related content following the success of its F1 documentary series. drive to survive golf documentary series Full swing.
Netflix followed this up with its first live sporting event, a nine-hole golf match called the Netflix Cup, featuring athletes familiar to TV viewers. drive to survive and full swing. Netflix joins many other subscription video-on-demand services, including Peacock, Apple TV+, Paramount+, and Max, in offering live sports to subscribers without expensive rights packages.
Nevertheless, as Netflix and other tech giants move into live sports streaming and compete for future sports rights held by traditional studios, Disney, Fox Co., Warner Bros. Discovery recently partnered on a new company to consolidate streaming sports rights. Their untitled streaming platform will offer live linear channels including ESPN, ABC, Fox, TNT, and TBS, as well as gaming and other sports rights from all three media giants, on a non-exclusive basis.
And Netflix has a new focus on professional baseball after the streaming giant ordered a documentary series centered on the Boston Red Sox franchise. The Expos played their first game in Montreal in 1969, and announced in 2004 that the team would move to Washington, D.C., the following season and become the Washington Nationals.
Netflix and other U.S.-based streaming giants may also impress federal politicians and regulators in Ottawa, who recently passed legislation forcing foreign digital platforms to invest in and promote Canadian-originated programming. As a goal, we are deepening our commitment to local Canadian programming.
The Canadian documentary about Expo Montreal is executive produced by Marie-Christine Pouliot and Richard Speer.
