or


[04/09/19 - 08:08 AM]
Netflix Forms Overall Deal with Multi Award-Winning Filmmaker and Choreographer Kenny Ortega and Fast-Tracks His First Two Projects
Highlights include: "Julie and the Phantoms," a musical comedy series in development based on an International Emmy Award-nominated Brazillian television series.

[via press release from Netflix]

NETFLIX FORMS OVERALL DEAL WITH MULTI AWARD-WINNING FILMMAKER AND CHOREOGRAPHER KENNY ORTEGA AND FAST-TRACKS HIS FIRST TWO PROJECTS

Ortega Will Direct and Produce Auntie Claus Film and Julie and the Phantoms Original Series

Hollywood, Calif. - April 9, 2019 - Netflix today announced that it has entered into a multi-year overall deal with producer, director, and choreographer Kenny Ortega. Ortega is known for the High School Musical franchise, which earned him a Primetime Emmy and Directors Guild of America Award. Widely acclaimed for his genre-bending work in musicals, drama, comedy, and family programs, Ortega has directed and choreographed international hits including the Descendants trilogy, Newsies, and Hocus Pocus, and choreographed classic films including Dirty Dancing, Ferris Bueller's Day Off, and Pretty in Pink, among others. Truman Alfaro will serve as Ortega's development executive.

The first two projects Ortega will direct and produce for Netflix are Auntie Claus (working title), a film, and Julie and the Phantoms, an original series, which he will also executive produce. Auntie Claus is a musical based on the popular book series of the same name by Elise Primavera involving a young girl determined to get to the bottom of why her eccentric, Christmas-loving Aunt disappears every Christmas. It will be adapted by Tiffany Paulsen (Holidate, Nancy Drew).

Julie and the Phantoms is a musical comedy series in development based on an International Emmy Award-nominated Brazillian television series. Julie is a teenaged girl who finds her passion for music and life with the help of a high -concept band of three teen boys (The Phantoms) who have been dead for 25 years. Julie, in turn, helps them become the band they were never able to be. Dan Cross and David Hoge (The Thundermans, Pair of Kings) will serve as showrunners and executive producers on the series, with George Salinas and Jaime Aymerich of Crossover Entertainment, as well as Hugo Janeba and Joao Tikhmiroff of Mixer Entertainment. Jason La Padura and Natalie Hart (High School Musical and Descendants trilogies) are now casting the titular roles.

QUOTE FROM TED SARANDOS, CHIEF CONTENT OFFICER, NETFLIX: "Throughout the course of his career, Kenny Ortega has inspired generations of artists and audiences alike. That he has chosen to make Netflix his creative home to work on both feature films and series is thrilling. We can't wait to see what he brings to Netflix to delight musical-loving families and audiences around the globe."

QUOTE FROM KENNY ORTEGA: "As a fan of Netflix and their dynamic range of high quality content, I am thrilled to begin a creative relationship with the company. I'm super excited about the projects we already have in development and the shared enthusiasm I feel from the company. l look forward to this new Netflix collaboration with the highest hopes."

About Kenny Ortega

Kenny Ortega is a multi award-winning director, choreographer, and producer. Some of Ortega's work throughout his long and illustrious career in film and television includes Newsies, Hocus Pocus, Dirty Dancing, Ferris Bueller's Day Off, Pretty in Pink, and the High School Musical franchise, for which Ortega won an Emmy Award for choreography. He is also the executive producer for the films' multi-platinum soundtracks. Ortega directed and executive produced High School Musical 3: Senior Year (HSM 3), which became the biggest theatrical box office opening for a musical in history. Most recently, he directed Descendants 3, the third installment in the record-breaking Descendants trilogy. Ortega has also directed A Change of Heart (winner of the OUTshine Film Festival Audience Award for Best Feature), The Rocky Horror Picture Show: Let's Do the Time Warp Again, and The Hocus Pocus 25th Anniversary Special.

Ortega was honored with Directing and Choreography Emmy awards for his work as supervising choreographer and co-artistic director of the Salt Lake Olympic Ceremonies and an Emmy and American Choreography award for the Atlanta Olympic Ceremonies.

He has received three Emmy Awards, two Directors Guild of America Awards, The Fred & Adele Astaire Lifetime Achievement Award, Bob Fosse Award, American Choreography Lifetime Achievement Award, MTV Video Music Award, American Music Award, Billboard Award, ALMA Award, Nosotros Golden Eagle Award, Imagen Creative Achievement Award, and an NAACP Image Award, among others.

About Netflix

Netflix is the world's leading internet entertainment service with 139 million paid memberships in over 190 countries enjoying TV series, documentaries and feature films across a wide variety of genres and languages. Members can watch as much as they want, anytime, anywhere, on any internet-connected screen. Members can play, pause and resume watching, all without commercials or commitments.





  [april 2019]  
S
M
T
W
T
F
S
 


· JULIE AND THE PHANTOMS (NETFLIX)





[08/26/25 - 12:06 PM]
FOX Sports Launches New FS1 Daily Studio Show "Wake Up Barstool"
Debuting Tuesday, September 2, the two-hour daily studio show airs live weekdays on FS1 from 8:00-10:00 AM ET, bringing Barstool's signature mix of unfiltered voices, candid personalities and passionate sports talk to fans nationwide.

[08/26/25 - 12:01 PM]
Netflix Top 10 Week of August 18: "KPop Demon Hunters" Reigns as Netflix's Most Popular Film, Claims No. 1 in Top 10
"Wednesday" stayed on top of the English TV list for a third week with Wednesday Season 2, Part 1 claiming another 13.4 million views.

[08/26/25 - 11:04 AM]
Video: MGM+ Debuts Action-Packed Trailer and Premiere Date for "Billy the Kid" Season 3
The final season premieres Sunday, September 28 at 9:00 pm ET/PT.

[08/26/25 - 11:00 AM]
Golden Globe and Emmy Award-Winner Camryn Manheim, Tyler Posey, Jamie Chung, Noah Reid and Sara Canning to Guest Star in FOX's Returning Captivating Crime Series "Murder in a Small Town"
The series returns Tuesday, September 23 on FOX.

[08/26/25 - 10:30 AM]
It's Time to Get Down to Business When NBC's New Series "On Brand with Jimmy Fallon" Premieres Tuesday, Sept. 30 at 10 P.M. ET/PT
The 10 creatives working to disrupt the marketing profession in NBC's newest innovative business competition series have been revealed.

[08/26/25 - 10:04 AM]
Hulu's Critically Acclaimed Comedy Series "Deli Boys" Renewed for a Second Season
Fred Armisen will join the cast as a legendary gambling savant with an uncanny ability to read people like cards.

[08/26/25 - 09:00 AM]
HBO Original Comedy Series "I Love LA," From Creator and Star Rachel Sennott, Debuts November 2
An ambitious friend group navigates life and love in LA.

[08/26/25 - 09:00 AM]
CBS Presents the Official Emmy Awards Pre-Show, "ET: Live on the Emmys Red Carpet"
Kevin Frazier and Nischelle Turner will bring audiences up close with television's biggest names as they arrive, turn heads with red carpet looks and reflect on what it means to be part of TV's most prestigious night.

[08/26/25 - 08:43 AM]
Video: Peacock Releases Official Trailer & New Images for "Devil in Disguise: John Wayne Gacy"
All eight episodes of the limited series will be available to stream October 16.

[08/26/25 - 08:24 AM]
"Sunday Night Baseball Presented by Capital One": Boston Red Sox vs. New York Yankees Draws ESPN's Second-Largest Audience of MLB Season: 2,572,000 Viewers
The game peaked with 2,889,000 viewers at 8:15 p.m. ET, according to Nielsen.

[08/26/25 - 08:01 AM]
Netflix's Upcoming Preschool Slate Featuring New "Ms. Rachel," The "Sesame Street" Date Announcement, New Games, and More!
Start the school year off with all of your kids' favorite friends on Netflix with all-new episodes from "Ms. Rachel" (September 1), "Sesame Street" (November 10), "Gabby's Dollhouse" (November 17) and so much more on Netflix.

[08/26/25 - 08:01 AM]
Video: "The Lowdown" - Official Trailer - Ethan Hawke, Kyle MacLachlan, Keith David - FX
The series follows the gritty exploits of citizen journalist Lee Raybon (Ethan Hawke), a self-proclaimed Tulsa "truthstorian" whose obsession with the truth is always getting him into trouble.

[08/26/25 - 07:33 AM]
BBC and Showtime Reveal First Look Images from Season Two of "Dreaming Whilst Black" from A24 and Big Deal Films
The new season finds Kwabena at the start of his professional career in a new era: the age of diversity, equity and inclusion, where empowering marginalized voices are seemingly at the top of everyone's agenda.

[08/26/25 - 07:10 AM]
ESPN Reveals 2025-26 College Football Commentator Roster; Top Teams Return for Another Season
The network will deploy more than two dozen teams of commentators, analysts and reporters to cover the season from August's Week 0 kickoff through the College Football Playoff National Championship in Miami in January 2026.

[08/26/25 - 07:01 AM]
Video: Apple TV+ Unveils Trailer for the Engrossing Investigative Thriller "The Savant"
The eight-episode thriller will make its global debut on Apple TV+ with the first two episodes on Friday, September 26 followed by one new episode every Friday through November 7.