Has television truly become that much better than Hollywood films?

[KNIGHT OF THE LAKE]

Mad Men's pretty much a show largely about the sixties itself and some of the turmoil of that decade so outside of that context it doesn't really work. As for the others, there were a fair amount of crime dramas on TV even then, although probably much lighter on gore (attitudes on censorship in films and TV seemed to come and go at times, for example the Hayes Code on movies and the Wertham drama with comics; even in the early twentieth century there was a Thomas edison film that was controversial because two people *kissed*. On the flip side, there's stuff in the Bond films of the past that some would find uncomfortable today, for example).

I think you could argue all 4 of those are tied together because they ae largely character studies about flawed anti heroes. Dexter Morgan, Walter White, Tony Soprano, Don Draper.

[kidfresh512]

When Amazon is investing a billion dollars in their upcoming Lord of the Rings series and Disney investing in all the new content for their Disney +. As well as the quality coming from Netflix and Hulu, i.e Handmaid's Tale you can find high quality varied storytelling all over TV now.

And the biggest stars want to do these TV mini series and dramas now. TV used to be for the lower tier actors. Now even movie superstars will do a TV role or series because the quality is so good

[AJBopp]

When Amazon is investing a billion dollars in their upcoming Lord of the Rings series ...

TV used to be for the lower tier actors. Now even movie superstars will do a TV role or series because the quality is so good

I wouldn't discount as a motive the amount of money movie superstars can make from TV series' now, which wasn't an option before streaming.

[Mister Mets]

I just watched the first episode of Chernobyl, and it is very good, an indication of what the mini-series can do that a two hour film can't. It's certainly an argument for the power of TV over films.

However, while the typical mini-series may be better than the typical prestige movie, there are so many more movies. The top films also have much more of a cultural impact. Fosse/ Verdon may be better than Bohemian Rhapsody, but the latter will be seen by more people since it'll always be easier to get into a two hour film.

It's possible this will change in the near future thanks to streaming video and the resurgence of mini-series on cable. It could also be that the high quality of prestige mini-series is the result of all the barriers in place, and then when more get made, there's going to be more dreck.

[TriggerWarning]

However, while the typical mini-series may be better than the typical prestige movie, there are so many more movies. The top films also have much more of a cultural impact. Fosse/ Verdon may be better than Bohemian Rhapsody, but the latter will be seen by more people since it'll always be easier to get into a two hour film.

For 2019 there are likely only three candidates for the largest cultural impact: Endgame, Rise of the Skywalker (assuming it doesn't suck), and Game of Thrones. And I'd argue right now that GoT has a bigger one than Endgame because is anyone really talking about Endgame whereas people are still talking about how GoT ended. Just today a bunch more articles popped up across various media about how the actor who plays Bran said that his ending on the show came directly from George RR Martin.

[AJBopp]

For 2019 there are likely only three candidates for the largest cultural impact: Endgame, Rise of the Skywalker (assuming it doesn't suck), and Game of Thrones. And I'd argue right now that GoT has a bigger one than Endgame because is anyone really talking about Endgame whereas people are still talking about how GoT ended. Just today a bunch more articles popped up across various media about how the actor who plays Bran said that his ending on the show came directly from George RR Martin.

My impression though is that there is still GoT discussion going on because purple were generally unhappy with the final season in comparison with what came before it, which is not the case for Endgame.

Not saying either makes a case for cultural impact, just pointing out the reason for the length of the discussion.

I personally am not sure "cultural impact" is the correct term for any of the three movies listed.