DreamWorks Television

DreamWorks Television
Company type	Division
Industry	Television production ; Television syndication
Predecessor	Geffen Television
Founded	December 1994;29 years ago
Founders	Steven Spielberg ; Jeffrey Katzenberg ; David Geffen
Defunct	September 6, 2013;11 years ago
Fate	Folded into Amblin Television
Successors	Amblin Television (live action counterpart); DreamWorks Animation Television ; (animation counterpart)
Headquarters	Universal City, California , United States
Parent	DreamWorks Pictures
Divisions	DreamWorks International Television; DreamWorks Television Animation (1996–1999)

Last updated November 30, 2024

DreamWorks Television was an American television distribution and production company based in Universal City, California, that was a division of DreamWorks.^[1]

History

DreamWorks Television was formed in December 1994 as DreamWorks Pictures agreed to a $200 million seven-year television production joint venture with the Capital Cities/ABC.^[2] The company was set up to produce series for broadcast networks, cable channels and first run syndication with no first look for the ABC Network, but financial incentives favored ABC.^[3] The first show, Champs, was scheduled as a mid-season replacement for the ABC network. Dan McDermott was named division chief executive in June 1995.^[4] DreamWorks Television's first success was Spin City on ABC.^[3] The Walt Disney Company bought Capital Cities/ABC in February 1996.^[5]

In 1997, DreamWorks Television had a falling-out with NBC over the development of various TV shows.^[6] The dispute was eventually settled, and went to being a development slater for NBC in 1998.^[7] In 1998, DreamWorks has struck a deal with Paramount Domestic Television to syndicate Spin City for off-net syndication.^[8]

In 2002, the company's joint venture agreement with ABC ended. This agreement was replaced by a development agreement with NBC with a first look clause, financing for series pickups by the network while taking a financial stake in the show. DreamWorks Television could finance shows sold to other outlets, and NBC paid an annual fee to it.^[3]

TV shows

Much of the pre-2008 DreamWorks Television catalogue is currently owned and distributed worldwide by Paramount Global Content Distribution with the exception of the programs Line of Fire , Carpoolers and Oliver Beene (distributed by Disney–ABC Home Entertainment and Television Distribution), Las Vegas (distributed in North America by NBCUniversal Syndication Studios and internationally by MGM Worldwide Television Distribution), Father of the Pride (distributed by NBCUniversal Syndication Studios), Off Centre (distributed by Warner Bros. Television), Band of Brothers (distributed by HBO Enterprises), Miracle Workers (distributed by Entertainment One), and Rescue Me (distributed by Sony Pictures Television); Paramount also co-distributes the following DWTV programs including The Job (with Disney–ABC Home Entertainment and Television Distribution), Boomtown (with NBCUniversal Syndication Studios in North America and MGM Worldwide Television Distribution outside North America) and Alienators: Evolution Continues (North American joint distribution with WildBrain; international joint distribution to the series has been held by Sony Pictures Television and WildBrain).

TV series produced by DreamWorks Television

1990s

Title	Years	Network	Notes
Champs	1996	ABC	Co-production with Ubu Productions
High Incident	1996–1997	ABC	Co-production with Johnson/Pavone Productions (season 1), Nothing But Net, Inc. (season 1) and Downwell Productions (season 2)
Majority Rules^[9]	1996–1997	KPNX
Spin City	1996–2002	ABC	Co-production with Ubu Productions and Lottery Hill Entertainment
Ink	1996–1997	CBS	Co-production with Shukovsky English Entertainment and Addis/Weischer Television
Arsenio	1997	ABC	Co-production with David Rosenthal Productions and Arsenio Hall Communications
Toonsylvania	1998–1999	Fox Kids	Produced by DreamWorks Television Animation
Invasion America	1998	The WB	Produced by DreamWorks Television Animation
Anna Says	1999		Co-production with Lottery Hill Productions
It's Like, You Know...	1999–2000	ABC	Co-production with 42 Pound Productions and EWH3 Productions
Freaks and Geeks	1999–2000	NBC	Co-production with Apatow Productions

2000s

Title	Years	Network	Notes
The Others	2000	NBC	Co-production with Delusional Films and NBC Studios
Battery Park	2000	NBC	Co-production with Ubu Productions
The Job	2001–2002	ABC	Co-production with The Cloudland Company, Apostle and Touchstone Television
Band of Brothers	2001	HBO	Miniseries; co-production with Playtone, HBO Entertainment and British Broadcasting Corporation
Alienators: Evolution Continues	2001–2002	Fox Kids	US co-production with The Montecito Picture Company, DIC Entertainment and Dentsu Produced outside the US by Columbia TriStar Television Based on the 2001 film Evolution by DreamWorks Pictures and Columbia Pictures
Undeclared		Fox	Co-production with Apatow Productions
Off Centre		The WB	Co-production with Weitz, Weitz & Zuker and Warner Bros. Television
Boomtown	2002–2003	NBC	Co-production with Nemo Films and NBC Studios
Taken	2002	Sci-Fi Channel	Miniseries
Oliver Beene	2003–2004	Fox	Co-production with Steven Levitan Productions, ge.wirtz Films and 20th Century Fox Television
Las Vegas	2003–2008	NBC	Co-production with Gary Scott Thompson Productions, NBC Studios (season 1), NBC Universal Television Studio (seasons 2–5) and Universal Media Studios (season 5)
Line of Fire	2003–2004	ABC	Co-production with Battle Plan Productions and Touchstone Television
Rescue Me	2004–2011	FX	Co-production with The Cloudland Company, Apostle and Sony Pictures Television
Father of the Pride	2004–2005	NBC	Produced by DreamWorks Animation
The Contender	2005–2008	NBC (season 1) / ESPN (seasons 2–3) / Versus (season 4)	Co-production with Mark Burnett Productions and ESPN Original Entertainment (seasons 2–3)
Into the West	2005	TNT	Miniseries; co-production with Voice Pictures
Miracle Workers	2006	ABC	Co-production with Renegade 83
Dog Bites Man	2006	Comedy Central
On the Lot	2007	Fox	Co-production with Mark Burnett Productions and Amblin Television
Carpoolers	2007–2008	ABC	Co-production with T.R.O.N.T., 3 Arts Entertainment and ABC Studios
United States of Tara	2009–2011	Showtime	Co-production with Showtime Networks
Wedding Day^[10]	2009	TNT	Co-production with Mark Burnett Productions

2010s

Title	Years	Network	Notes
The Pacific	2010	HBO	Miniseries; co-production with Playtone and HBO Entertainment
Falling Skies	2011–2013	TNT	Seasons 1–3 only; seasons 4–5 produced by Amblin Television
Smash	2012–2013	NBC	co-production with Madwoman in the Attic, Inc. (season 1) and Universal Television
The Americans ^[11]	2013	FX	Pilot; co-production with Fox Television Studios and FX Productions

TV specials produced by DreamWorks Television

The Secret World of Antz (1998)
When You Believe: Music From "The Prince of Egypt" (1998)
Galaxy Quest: 20th Anniversary — The Journey Continues (1999)
The Hatching of "Chicken Run" (2000)
Gladiator Games: The Roman Bloodsport (2000)
We Stand Alone Together (2001)
What Lies Beneath: Constructing the Perfect Thriller (2001)
Woody Allen: A Life in Film (2002)

TV series produced by DreamWorks Animation

These are TV series produced by DreamWorks Animation (DWA) that were distributed by DWTV around the world. In 2004, the animation division of DreamWorks was spun off as a separate company (and now bought by NBCUniversal in 2016) and thus animated shows after 2004 do not apply here.

Toonsylvania (1998–1999)
Invasion America (1998)
Father of the Pride (2004–2005)

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References

↑ Fabrikant, Geraldine (1997-01-20). "Despite a Sluggish Beginning, Dreamworks Is Viewed as a Potential Hollywood Power". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331 . Retrieved 2019-08-09.
↑ McClellan, Steve. (December 5, 1994). "ABC makes high-profile production leap." Broadcasting & Cable. 1994. HighBeam Research. Accessed on December 27, 2013.
1 2 3 Kunz, William M. (2007). "2". Culture Conglomerates: Consolidation in the Motion Picture and Television Industries. Rowman & Littlefield. pp. 49, 50. ISBN 9780742540668 . Retrieved June 4, 2014.
↑ Hofmeister, Sallie (June 20, 1995). "Company Town : Fox Executive Dan McDermott Named to Head DreamWorks SKG Television". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved June 19, 2014.
↑ Fabrikant, Geraldine. THE MEDIA BUSINESS;Disney and ABC Shareholders Solidly Approve Merger Deal January 05, 1996. The New York Times . Accessed July 8, 2013.
↑ Variety Staff; Staff, Variety (1997-03-31). "NBC PILOTS PULLED". Variety. Retrieved 2021-08-16.
↑ Hontz, Jenny (1998-10-07). "Is Peacock target of studio boycott?". Variety. Retrieved 2021-08-16.
↑ Littleton, Cynthia (1998-05-05). "DreamWorks' 'Spin' goes off-net for Par". Variety. Retrieved 2021-08-17.
↑ McBride, Joseph (January 4, 2011). Steven Spielberg, A Biography (2nd ed.). Univ. Press of Mississippi. p. 605. ISBN 9781604738377 . Retrieved April 15, 2020.
↑ Lowry, Brian (June 15, 2009). "Wedding Day". Variety . Retrieved April 19, 2020.
↑ Molloy, Tim (December 16, 2011). "FX Orders Cold War Pilot 'The Americans'". The Wrap. Retrieved May 26, 2014. DreamWorks Television is also credited as an executive producer on the pilot, which is being produced by Fox Television Studios and FX Productions.

External links

DreamWorks Studios website Archived 2013-11-22 at the Wayback Machine

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
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[1] Fabrikant, Geraldine (1997-01-20). "Despite a Sluggish Beginning, Dreamworks Is Viewed as a Potential Hollywood Power". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331 . Retrieved 2019-08-09.

[2] McClellan, Steve. (December 5, 1994). "ABC makes high-profile production leap." Broadcasting & Cable. 1994. HighBeam Research. Accessed on December 27, 2013.

[cccmptvi-3] 1 2 3 Kunz, William M. (2007). "2". Culture Conglomerates: Consolidation in the Motion Picture and Television Industries. Rowman & Littlefield. pp. 49, 50. ISBN 9780742540668 . Retrieved June 4, 2014.

[4] Hofmeister, Sallie (June 20, 1995). "Company Town : Fox Executive Dan McDermott Named to Head DreamWorks SKG Television". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved June 19, 2014.

[5] Fabrikant, Geraldine. THE MEDIA BUSINESS;Disney and ABC Shareholders Solidly Approve Merger Deal January 05, 1996. The New York Times . Accessed July 8, 2013.

[6] Variety Staff; Staff, Variety (1997-03-31). "NBC PILOTS PULLED". Variety. Retrieved 2021-08-16.

[7] Hontz, Jenny (1998-10-07). "Is Peacock target of studio boycott?". Variety. Retrieved 2021-08-16.

[8] Littleton, Cynthia (1998-05-05). "DreamWorks' 'Spin' goes off-net for Par". Variety. Retrieved 2021-08-17.

[ssbiography-9] McBride, Joseph (January 4, 2011). Steven Spielberg, A Biography (2nd ed.). Univ. Press of Mississippi. p. 605. ISBN 9781604738377 . Retrieved April 15, 2020.

[10] Lowry, Brian (June 15, 2009). "Wedding Day". Variety . Retrieved April 19, 2020.

[11] Molloy, Tim (December 16, 2011). "FX Orders Cold War Pilot 'The Americans'". The Wrap. Retrieved May 26, 2014. DreamWorks Television is also credited as an executive producer on the pilot, which is being produced by Fox Television Studios and FX Productions.

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v t e Steven Spielberg
Accolades Bibliography Filmography Unrealized projects
Films directed	Firelight (1964) Slipstream (1967) Amblin' (1968) Night Gallery (1969; segment "Eyes") Duel (1971) Something Evil (1972) Savage (1973) The Sugarland Express (1974) Jaws (1975) Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977) 1941 (1979) Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982) Twilight Zone: The Movie (1983) Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984) The Color Purple (1985) Empire of the Sun (1987) Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989) Always (1989) Hook (1991) Jurassic Park (1993) Schindler's List (1993) The Lost World: Jurassic Park (1997) Amistad (1997) Saving Private Ryan (1998) A.I. Artificial Intelligence (2001) Minority Report (2002) Catch Me If You Can (2002) The Terminal (2004) War of the Worlds (2005) Munich (2005) Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008) The Adventures of Tintin (2011) War Horse (2011) Lincoln (2012) Bridge of Spies (2015) The BFG (2016) The Post (2017) Ready Player One (2018) West Side Story (2021) The Fabelmans (2022)
Films written	Ace Eli and Rodger of the Skies (1973) Poltergeist (1982) The Goonies (1985)
Films produced	An American Tail: Fievel Goes West (1991) Memoirs of a Geisha (2005) Flags of Our Fathers (2006) Letters from Iwo Jima (2006) Super 8 (2011) The Hundred-Foot Journey (2014) Maestro (2023) The Color Purple (2023) Music by John Williams (2024) Hamnet (TBA)
Television	"L.A. 2017" (1971) Amazing Stories (1985–1987) High Incident (1996–1997) Invasion America (1998)
Video games	The Dig (1995) Steven Spielberg's Director's Chair (1996) Medal of Honor (1999) Medal of Honor: Allied Assault (2002) Boom Blox (2008) Boom Blox Bash Party (2009)
Family	Amy Irving (first wife) Kate Capshaw (second wife) Destry Spielberg (daughter) Sasha Spielberg (daughter) Arnold Spielberg (father) Anne Spielberg (sister)
Related	Amblin Partners Amblin Entertainment Amblin Television DreamWorks Television Amblimation DreamWorks Pictures DreamWorks Animation USC Shoah Foundation Institute for Visual History and Education Steven Spielberg Jewish Film Archive Sammy Fabelman Spielberg (2017) "Cannibal" (2022)