Alicia Keys Kicks Off Amazon Upfront Show, Reese Witherspoon Wraps It Up
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Amazon’s first-ever upfront presentation, at Pier 36 in Lower Manhattan, got a late start due to its remote location. But the energy spiked when Alicia Keys took the stage.
“Growing up in New York City, there’s something about connection that you find really important,” she said, adding that her common ground with Amazon is “how do we connect with people, how do we bring it deeper and farther?”
After singing “Empire State of Mind,” she yelled, “It’s gonna be a beautiful dayyyy!”
Paul Kotas, senior VP, Amazon Advertising, came out and spoke about Lord of the Rings, Reacher and live sports, including Thursday Night Football.
Also Read: Continuing Coverage of the 2024 Upfronts
“At Amazon we’re never done innovating,” he said, then introduced Mike Hopkins, senior VP and head of Prime Video and Amazon MGM Studios. He called advertising on Prime “a major leap forward,” and “an entirely new chapter for us and the industry.”
He boasted about Fallout’s 80 million viewers, and The Idea of You approaching 50 million.
Then it was Jennifer Salke, head of Amazon MGM Studios. “No other studio offers creators so many ways to engage with an audience,” she said, citing original programs, books, fashion, podcasts and retail.
Salke brought Jake Gyllenhaal, star of Road House, which Salke said has also had close to 80 million views.
Gyllenhaal said the project was “such big shoes to fill.”
He added, “It was exhilarating to feel all the intensity and the buzz and the vibe.”
Alan Ritchson came out to discuss Reacher. “All we have to do is honor the books,” he said. “We just have to authentically honor the books and, so far so good.”
Aldis Hodge was out next to discuss Alex Cross. The series’ success “proves that this character is absolutely timeless,” he said.
Hodge said the show aimed to honor the character’s legacy, while also creating something that reflects “the here and the now.”
Reese Witherspoon and Will Ferrell then came out to discuss the offbeat rom-com You’re Cordially Invited. Ferrell, the self-proclaimed “rom-com king,” said he taught Witherspoon a few things about acting in such films.
Witherspoon countered, “You’re so funny when you run around naked. Because your body’s so weird.”
Octavia Spencer and Hannah Waddingham talked up their untitled series, which Spencer called an “action drama comedy.” It centers on a female assassin.
Waddingham said female aging is not typically embraced in Hollywood, but “this is a show about striving toward your prime and realizing you are at the height of your power.”
The actors said the project features the five F’s: fighting, freedom, fornicating and female friendship.
Next was The Summer I Turned Pretty. Creator Jenny Han said season three is coming in summer 2025, with 11 episodes.
Star Lola Tung said: “My character Belly has grown up so much in season two. I can’t wait for everyone to see her journey [in season three].”
Han said, “We’ve all been working really hard to make this an epic season of Summer.”
The discussion shifted to unscripted, and Patton Oswalt spoke about his game show The 1% Club. Oswalt quipped that he ended up on the show after losing the Reacher part to Ritchson and the Road House lead to Gyllenhaal.
The 1% Club is “not about what you know or how many facts are up in your skull,” he said. “It’s how your brain actually works.”
Jimmy Donaldson, aka Mr. Beast, spoke on video about Beast Games, which will have the most contestants of any game show ever, he said. “It’s going to be insane.”
Back to scripted, and a season five order for The Boys and a peek at the trailer for season two of The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power.
Keke Palmer talked up her movie The Pickup, with Eddie Murphy, before Jay Marine, VP global head of sports, stepped out. “Nothing drives bigger appointment viewing than sports,” he said.
The Thursday Night Football opener will be Dolphins-Bills September 12. Prime also has the National Women’s Soccer League and the WNBA, including Caitlin Clark’s pro debut this week. “She is amazing,” Marine said.
The TNF gang, Charissa Thompson, Ryan Fitzpatrick and Tony Gonzalez, was out next. “We can’t wait for the next chapter in what's now become a great rivalry,” said Thompson of the season opener.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. talked about NASCAR coming to Prime, and Prime’s documentary project about his father. Roger Federer spoke about Federer: Twelve Final Days.
“It’s been an amazing journey and I’m happy to share it,” he said.
Tanner Elton, VP, U.S. ad sales, and Sarah Iooss, head of U.S. agency & Twitch, Amazon Ads, were out next. “Our reach extends beyond Prime Video,” said Iooss.
Alan Moss, VP of global ad sales, hoped attendees would take one thing away from the upfront presentation: Full-funnel advertising at scale for everyone.
But then Reese Witherspoon tossed in a juicier takeaway: A Legally Blonde prequel series on Prime, showing Elle in high school.
