Warner Bros. Makes Large Investment In LeBron James' New "Uninterrupted" Series

Warner Bros. has invested $15.8M in "Uninterrupted," a series self-financed by Cavaliers F LeBron James and his agent, Maverick Carter, with the "goal of creating athlete-centric content for many platforms, including mobile, web and social, as well as linear television and film," according to Marisa Guthrie of the HOLLYWOOD REPORTER. "Uninterrupted" launched this month on Turner Sports' Bleacher Report site "as a hub for a series of point-of-view video shorts from athletes." The venture "marks the latest move into entertainment for the NBA star and the further blurring of the lines between sports and entertainment figures." James "has been featured heavily" in "Uninterrupted" video shorts, which "offer a peek behind the curtain at athletes' lives away from the game." Others participating include UFC fighter Ronda Rousey, Warriors F Draymond Green, tennis player Serena Williams and Patriots TE Rob Gronkowski. James said much like Lakers G Kobe Bryant utilized former MLBer Derek Jeter's The Players' Tribune Nov. 29 to announce his retirement, "Uninterrupted" is "giving athletes a way to connect with their fans." Guthrie notes there is no "traditional media intermediary," but the similarities between The Players' Tribune and Uninterrupted "end there." Carter and James "already have a partnership with Warner Bros. through their SpringHill Entertainment shingle." Turner Sports will "serve as the primary sales arm" of "Uninterrupted." But Carter and James "have brought on several new hires," including former Pepsico Senior Manager & Dir of Mountain Dew Jamal Henderson "as president and veteran journalist and former NBA.com writer Jimmy Spencer as head of content." The show "will continue to feature first-person video on Bleacher Report." But in December, "Uninterrupted" will release "Striving for Greatness," a five-episode series "featuring James' preparation for his 13th NBA season shot entirely" in VR with Oculus and airing on the show's Facebook page "using the platform's 360-degree feature" (HOLLYWOOD REPORTER, 12/11 issue). In Cleveland, Joe Vardon noted one of the platforms the series will be available on is a "new mobile application" called go90. Users of the mobile app will "have direct access" to testimonials, documentaries, and other original productions. After Bleacher Report and Facebook 360, go90 "becomes the third content host" for "Uninterrupted" (CLEVELAND.com, 12/2).

CUTTING OUT THE MIDDLE MAN? Vardon notes with ventures such as "Uninterrupted" and The Players' Tribune, some of the most popular, recognizable, influential athletes in the world "are raising a boat-load of cash so they can speak directly to their audience without a middle man or middle woman." CNN Senior Reporter for Media & Politics Dylan Byers said, "Athletes have everything to gain and nothing to lose by circumventing traditional media. ... They get to tell their stories on their terms, without any editorializing from journalists." Vardon notes "Uninterrupted" to this point "has been designed to tell more of the athlete's story away from the game, highlighting quirky parts of their personal lives that maybe don't make their way into a news conference" (Cleveland PLAIN DEALER, 12/3).