If Disney Got the Rights to Dallas

Rove

Telly Talk Warrior
There has been quite a bit of backlash from Star Wars fans since Disney gained the rights.
Understandably so. What did they pay for it? 4 Billion wasn't it? As quick as a flash and even before the first movie dropped, Disney flooded the market with new merchandise. It was available in my local supermarket and the merchandise was cheap and nasty...all made in China of course. Rumours were Disney recouped their investment prior to the first movie being released.
 

Rove

Telly Talk Warrior
We’re talking about the cinematic sagas. Those aren’t praised at all. Of course, you have people that like them, but you have more who think they’re “meh.” They’ve done a good job with the Disney plus series, nobody’s debating that, but they’ve received a ton of backlash from a lot of fans, not just the vocal few, about the sequel trilogy.
That's where I sit with the current Star Wars Universe. I thought the Disney trilogy movies were mediocre but I'm loving The Mandalorian, The Book of Boba Fett and currently Obi-Wan. To be fair though the current series on Disney+ has the freedom to tell a story rather than trying to tell it in 2½ hours.
 

Jock Ewing Fan

Telly Talk Star
Well, I didn't quite say that. I think Billy and Jock's criticism of Disney's Star Wars franchise is ridiculous, but it doesn't necessarily mean Disney should take over the Dallas brand. I mean, as much as I love Dallas and think the concept still has much potential, it's not comparable to Star Wars. I don't really see Dallas attractions at Disneyworld or Disneyland ever being a thing. But I do think a Dallas REBOOT (which is what it would have to be, and us old-ass fans need to accept that) and rather than Disney I think a cable network like HBO or Showtime would be the proper venue. I've point to shows like Billions and Succession as examples of what I think modern day Dallas could look like.


I haven't managed to watch any yet, but from I hear I also think you could point to Paramount +'s YELLOWSTONE (which sounds Dallas if it focused on Southfork instead of the oil business) as another example of how modern Dallas could succeed. And they indeed seem to be creating the type of franchise with spin-offs and prequels that you're talking about.
What I said is not ridiculous.
You should read WHAT I SAID, and not imposed your own erroneous assumptions

In so many words,

I said that didn't think Disney was the best place for new Dallas
I said that I am not a big Star Wars fan, and as such, I did not comment on the movies' plots and characters,
so I relied on both Box office numbers and the reactions of some of the fans who have strong opinions
about what they perceive as the Disney trilogies shortcomings

I noted that George Lucas and Mark Hamill were not all that happy with the Disney trilogy.
I noted that merchandising sales were disappointing and that Hasbro had to lay off people

I noted that Disney was still making a profit on the franchise, but that they could have done better.

You chose to vilify my opinion based on things I did not say.
People can like or dislike Disney's movies based on any number of factors.
You chose to create a straw man and attack it based on things I never said.
When you make such a choice, you sound as intolerant as those whom you criticize so inaccurately

With regard to other Star Wars entertainment, I did not focus on them because I do not watch it.
As I said, I am not a current fan, so I defer to those who can discuss it with reason and intelligence.
When you choose to create a straw man and make unsupportable assumptions based on your own ideology, you fail on both measures.
 
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Matthew Blaisdel

Telly Talk Star
Industrial Light & Magic were behind it and supposedly up to a billion hours was used to create the show.
So they started this back in the stone age?! :think:
 

Laurie Marr

Telly Talk Well-Known Member
I doubt streamers have the faintest idea of what Dallas was let alone be salivating at the prospect of a revival. In many ways Dallas’s reputation has become tarnished as the years have gone by. It’s no longer acknowledged as an outstanding and influential example of popular serialised drama, but as an outlandish and faintly absurd throwback to the 80s.
 

Billy Wall

Telly Talk Dream Maker
I doubt streamers have the faintest idea of what Dallas was let alone be salivating at the prospect of a revival. In many ways Dallas’s reputation has become tarnished as the years have gone by. It’s no longer acknowledged as an outstanding and influential example of popular serialised drama, but as an outlandish and faintly absurd throwback to the 80s.

Sad , but true. I, not too long ago, saw a 100 greatest TV shows list and was shocked that Dallas was near the back end of that list. I think it’s ridiculous, but that pretty much proves your point on how Dallas is viewed today.
 
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pete lashmar

Telly Talk Addict
Disney & Dallas are a match made in hell as far as I'm concerned - the house of mouse own far too much of today's mainline cinema and TV franchises and it's simply running them all down to the point where people haven't got a damn clue what goes where, when, before what and after that.

Dallas is a character lead TV drama about a wealthy family, their family, friends, enemies and the oil/gas/renewable energy business. It needs someone with a love for it in order to bring it back to TV screens, not a multi-billion franchise killer that cares not one jot about it's legacy.

That said, what they've done with Star Wars cannot really be compared to a show like Dallas. Star Wars is set in it's own entire universe where they can create and do anything they want to - therefore it can be expanded beyond what we already had before they bought Lucas Film out.

As a huge fan of the original trilogy I was saddened and disappointed at the prequel trilogy - it was tedious, dull and really didn't build on what had come before. Far far too much green screen, cgi etc, it was dreadful.....but that wasn't Disney, that was purely George Lucas.

Then the sequels came via Disney and the 1st film was received pretty well but went downhill rapidly.

But with Disney+ they have been able to create whole new spin offs that have been very well received. I've not watched any of them personally but the impact on social media has been overwhelmingly positive so maybe Star Wars is better suited to TV serials than big sweeping movies?

I will watch Obi One simply because it's a direct intro to episode 4 and I'll be very interested to see what Disney does with it after Lucas's bizarre prequels.

But Star Wars to Disney is just a huge cash cow - as is the MCU - Galaxy's Edge is wonderous when you first stand next to the Millennium Falcon or when experiencing Rise of the resistance (incredible ride) but then you suddenly realise it's ALL about merchandise, it's all about sales, marketing and cash. If Disney had brought in characters from the original trilogy it would have been a brilliant move....retro merch always sells better anyway but I for one wanted to see Vader and other original trilogy characters, I wanted to be in THAT Star Wars universe, not the one that's a bit shit.

Disney are also attracting a huge amount of negativity at the moment and a CEO change is just around the corner when contracts expire - but Disney should never touch Dallas....Dallas doesn't need that kind of negativity....and certainly not after the TNT debacle.
 

Rove

Telly Talk Warrior
I doubt streamers have the faintest idea of what Dallas was let alone be salivating at the prospect of a revival. In many ways Dallas’s reputation has become tarnished as the years have gone by. It’s no longer acknowledged as an outstanding and influential example of popular serialised drama, but as an outlandish and faintly absurd throwback to the 80s.
While I do agree with the sentiment I wish more people would acknowledge the influence Dallas had on the small screen which is still felt today. Up until the "Who Shot J.R.?" final episode did anyone hear or know what a cliffhanger was? Series today still use this tactic. Without Dallas there was no Dynasty, Falcon Crest or Knots Landing. All those actors should acknowledge one actor in particular for their careers, I'm talking about Larry Hagman. His portrayal of J.R. Ewing in those early seasons spawned the likes of Alexis Carrington, Angela Channing and Abby Fairgate.

I do agree the prospect of seeing any form of Dallas back on the small screen is remote but I wish to God someone out there would realize its potential as an ongoing project even if produced as a limited series. But I want to see a series targeted towards adults, not teens. They have the Kardashounds, let's us have the Ewing's.

I'm am curious though what will occur if and when Warner Bros release Dallas on a streaming service or as a boxset and see if it finds a new market.
 

Taylor Bennett Jr.

Telly Talk Winner
Done well (which would be unlikely), Dallas is incredibly ripe for prequels. The seeds of stories have already been planted - the Gary/Val/Lucy/JR story is at least a half-season and maybe more pretty much pre-written..

Imagine a period piece centered on the cutthroat Texas oil business in the post-war years, with attention to detail on the order of Mad Men and cinematography like Yellowstone.
 

Billy Wall

Telly Talk Dream Maker
Done well (which would be unlikely), Dallas is incredibly ripe for prequels. The seeds of stories have already been planted - the Gary/Val/Lucy/JR story is at least a half-season and maybe more pretty much pre-written..

Imagine a period piece centered on the cutthroat Texas oil business in the post-war years, with attention to detail on the order of Mad Men and cinematography like Yellowstone.

I’ve said before, if I was to do a Dallas miniseries, it’ll be the Gary and Val story. Come to think of it, they should have done that when Dallas was still on the air. They had to at least considered it.
 

Rove

Telly Talk Warrior
Dallas is incredibly ripe for prequels
I've always liked the idea of a Dallas prequel going back to pre and including the American Civil War era. I see an Irish Ewing escaping the Great Potato Famine of 1845-49 and trying his luck in the Californian gold fields before his migration to Texas. I'd love to see a sweeping saga with high production values set against the back drop that is early Texas.

I can dream.
 

Ray_Krebbs

Telly Talk Well-Known Member
I'd love to see why J.R. referred to Val as a tramp. Perhaps she slept with him and produced Lucy. Maybe J.R. knew all along Lucy was his and brought her back to Southfork, but he kept her paternity a secret to avoid embarrassment. He did not want to be associated with Val. To me it never made sense why J.R. wanted Gary's daughter close to Southfork and Ewing Oil. You'd think he'd bribe Val to never tell her baby of the Ewing fortune.
 

Rove

Telly Talk Warrior
I'd love to see why J.R. referred to Val as a tramp. Perhaps she slept with him and produced Lucy. Maybe J.R. knew all along Lucy was his and brought her back to Southfork, but he kept her paternity a secret to avoid embarrassment. He did not want to be associated with Val. To me it never made sense why J.R. wanted Gary's daughter close to Southfork and Ewing Oil. You'd think he'd bribe Val to never tell her baby of the Ewing fortune.
I've always been at odds with the character of Lucy from the get go. I can see why the creators had her established at Southfork to later introduce the characters of Gary and Val. Perhaps the issue surrounding Lucy was the writers didn't know how to write for a teenager. My main issue was Charlene's acting skills up against such established actors like Jim Davis, Barbara Bel and others so this is possibly why I skip most of her scenes. It doesn't help we later find out Ray is a half-blood Ewing so his scenes with Lucy in early Dallas creeps me out. I was quite happy for Ray being left as the ranch hand and being great mates with Jock. It might have been best if Ray was never told who his father was but Jock knew. None of this was to be revealed until after Jock's death and Ray learns of this at the reading of Jock's will. As if Miss Ellie didn't have enough to contend with. Now she was hit with another whammy...Jock had fathered another child.

Those first seasons of Dallas had its share of hiccups and Lucy was a major one. I too believe there was a broader story to tell about Lucy and her parentage.
 

Billy Wall

Telly Talk Dream Maker
I'd love to see why J.R. referred to Val as a tramp. Perhaps she slept with him and produced Lucy. Maybe J.R. knew all along Lucy was his and brought her back to Southfork, but he kept her paternity a secret to avoid embarrassment. He did not want to be associated with Val. To me it never made sense why J.R. wanted Gary's daughter close to Southfork and Ewing Oil. You'd think he'd bribe Val to never tell her baby of the Ewing fortune.

This goes beyond JR. Jock and Ellie wasn’t going have their precious granddaughter running from one sleazy hotel room to another. It was never confirmed, but I believe JR had their blessings to go find her and bring her back home.

JR might not have gotten along with Lucy, but she was still a Ewing. Even he didn’t want a Ewing running around with someone he deemed as beneath the Ewing’s.
 
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bmasters9

Telly Talk Mega Star

Jock Ewing Fan

Telly Talk Star
I've always been at odds with the character of Lucy from the get go. I can see why the creators had her established at Southfork to later introduce the characters of Gary and Val. Perhaps the issue surrounding Lucy was the writers didn't know how to write for a teenager. My main issue was Charlene's acting skills up against such established actors like Jim Davis, Barbara Bel and others so this is possibly why I skip most of her scenes. It doesn't help we later find out Ray is a half-blood Ewing so his scenes with Lucy in early Dallas creeps me out. I was quite happy for Ray being left as the ranch hand and being great mates with Jock. It might have been best if Ray was never told who his father was but Jock knew. None of this was to be revealed until after Jock's death and Ray learns of this at the reading of Jock's will. As if Miss Ellie didn't have enough to contend with. Now she was hit with another whammy...Jock had fathered another child.

Those first seasons of Dallas had its share of hiccups and Lucy was a major one. I too believe there was a broader story to tell about Lucy and her parentage.
I tend to agree. The Lucy character never really had a big impact for me. By contrast, the Beth character on Yellowstone would be
an example of how to better develop the Lucy character. Granted, Lucy would not need to be that extreme, but maybe Charlene Tilton
just couldn't advance the character to the next level.
 
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