UPN sinks teeth into WB's 'Buffy'

Whedon irked by Kellner's EW comments

By JOSEF ADALIAN

Twentieth Century Fox Television's "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" -- the signature drama of the WB network -- is pulling up stakes and moving to Frog nemesis UPN.

Pact, which could ultimately end up with a $150 million pricetag, reps the first time in modern TV history that a hit series has jumped networks solely over economic issues. Yet because webs now routinely demand near-perpetual license agreements for co-productions with studios, it's unlikely the "Buffy" move will start a trend.

What the deal does do, however, is deny the WB its third highest-rated series and the show that heralded the Frog's transition from a family-oriented web to a home for high-quality dramas targeted at teen and young adult women.

Meanwhile, UPN gets a solid ratings performer (particularly with young femmes), one of TV's most critically acclaimed hours -- and a chance to shed its image as the testosterone-powered jockstrap web.

UPN topper Dean Valentine said the addition of "Buffy" will "make it possible to launch other quality shows with it. It's a great thing for us."

UPN is expected to receive another boost as early as this week, with Paramount Network Television set to officially announce that the next series in the "Star Trek" franchise, the tentatively titled "Enterprise," will bow on the netlet in the fall. While Par and UPN are Viacom siblings, there had been rumblings that "Enterprise" could end up elsewhere.

As for the "Buffy" deal, UPN has agreed to pay an average of $2.33 million per episode for the Joss Whedon-produced series as part of a two-year, 44-episode license agreement that keeps the show on the air through its seventh season. That puts UPN's cost for "Buffy" at just over $102 million over the life of the deal, which begins in the fall.

UPN may also end up snagging "Buffy" spinoff "Angel" for two years -- if, as many expect, the Frog decides to cancel the latter series in the wake of its progenitor's shift to UPN. In that event, UPN has agreed to a two-year pickup for "Angel," at a slight bump over the show's current license fee of around $1 million.

Add the "Buffy" and "Angel" costs together, and UPN's commitment to 20th comes out at roughly $150 million. Netlet will pay for 44 episodes of both shows even if a strike delays the start of the 2001-02 season.

There's no guarantee "Buffy" will continue to air 8 p.m. Tuesdays, though the timeslot remains the most likely home for the skein.

Dispelling rumblings that he might not be happy about moving, Whedon told Daily Variety that just the opposite is true. Stung by remarks by WB topper Jamie Kellner in Entertainment Weekly downplaying "Buffy's" value to the Frog, Whedon said he now welcomes a shift to UPN.

"I've been dumped by my fat old ex and Prince Charming has come and swept me off my feet," Whedon said. "I'm mostly very excited because I now have a network that cares about my show as opposed to one that insults it."

Whedon, who's repped by UTA -- which put together the original package for "Buffy" -- was quick to emphasize his continued respect for WB Entertainment co-chiefs Susanne Daniels and Jordan Levin. "Susanne is the reason ('Buffy') is on the WB, (and) I'll still do shots with Jordan," he said.

Whedon irked

Still, "As long as I live, I'll never understand why Jamie Kellner said the things he said," Whedon added. "I know he's a businessman, but to insult your best show ... is unfathomable. They didn't exist (before 'Buffy'). It sounds wicked braggy, 'cause it is, but it's not entirely untrue."

The WB responded to Whedon's comments by pointing out that it bought the scripts for "Buffy" when no other network was interested; found a partner in 20th Century Fox TV; shot two pilots; redeveloped the show; and gave it a prime slot on the schedule.

We "gave it our strongest promotional and publicity efforts, established it as a hit and moved it to Tuesday with 'Dawson's Creek' only to make it the company's promotional focus once again," the statement read. The WB "bought a spinoff show, 'Angel,' and scheduled it exactly where Mr. Whedon wanted it scheduled, promoted that night heavily, and offered to buy two more years of both shows ... and finally offered the highest license fee in our history to renew the program.

"We're sorry that this didn't demonstrate to Mr. Whedon our utmost respect and commitment to the show."

The battle for "Buffy" began back in 1999, when Fox Entertainment Television Group chairman Sandy Grushow, who at the time was head of 20th Century Fox TV, hinted that the studio might move "Buffy" to sister web Fox if Kellner didn't step up with a offer that repped "fair market value."

Fast forward to January, when Kellner said the Frog net would not pay more for "Buffy" than the amount of coin the skein draws in ad revenue, a figure pegged at around $1.6 million per episode.

When the Frog's exclusive negotiating window expired in early March, 20th toppers Gary Newman and Dana Walden talked to ABC and NBC about "Buffy"; nets were interested, but not willing to commit to a two-year deal.

UPN also emerged as a long shot player to snag "Buffy" (Daily Variety, Feb. 27).

By early April, industry insiders said, Kellner upped his offer to $1.8 million per seg for "Buffy" and a two-year renewal for "Angel." Frog execs also raised the possibility of an even higher license fee, closer to the minimum $2.1 million 20th was willing to accept.

To get the fee, however, the studio would have to agree to a shared cable window for "Angel" on a Turner network. Twentieth was interested, but only if Turner would also make an early deal for the syndie rights to "Angel," something the latter conglom wasn't willing to offer.

With no real movement on either side, Frog execs pulled their final offer off the table about 10 days ago. Twentieth, meanwhile, proceeded to finalize details of a deal with UPN.

UPN "made us an aggressive offer that will allow Joss Whedon to produce the show the way we believe he's earned the right to after five years of incredible work," Newman said.

Late last week, 20th informed the Frog that it had a legit offer from another buyer. On Friday afternoon, the WB officially passed, clearing the way for the UPN deal.

Frog insiders are pushing the idea that 20th sold "Buffy" to UPN only because parent company News Corp. will soon own several key UPN affils once its acquisition of the Chris-Craft stations closes later this year. There's also a chance News Corp. could end up with an equity stake in UPN or perhaps acquire the network altogether, WB insiders argued.

Kellner was not available for comment, nor would any other WB execs go on record regarding the "Buffy" move. But the network's official statement on the matter makes clear the Frog's view.

Fox fire

"Twentieth Television has made an inauspicious decision for the television industry by taking one of their owned programs off a nonaffiliated network and placing it on a network in which they have a large vested interest through their acquisition of Chris-Craft and public comments that Fox and UPN are discussing ways to merge," the net said.

As of now, however, UPN and 20th are not part of the same family. And the $2.33 million per episode UPN is paying for "Buffy" is $500,000 more per seg than the WB's final offer -- a $22 million difference when spread over 44 episodes.

As a result, 20th execs said the decision to go to UPN was a simple matter of economics. "Buffy" costs around $2 million an episode to produce, and the studio didn't feel it should have to deficit-finance a hit series in its sixth season.

"If News Corp. didn't own a single UPN station, we would have made the same exact deal," Grushow said.

Walden said it didn't "make sense on a business level to go anywhere else" but UPN.

"All of us felt very strongly until recently that we wanted to make a deal with the WB, to keep the show where it was," she said. But "there was one network willing to go so far out there to make a deal, and another network that's continuously drawn a line in terms of its passion and finances.

"It wasn't much of a choice in the final analysis."