Gotham to Stream on Netflix Worldwide

Netflix has announced that upcoming FOX drama Gotham will be available to stream through the media giant come 2015. With the show currently having a 16-episode order, it might be available on Netflix as early as February/March of next year.

“Gotham is the most anticipated new series of the fall season and we are thrilled to offer it to our members around the world,” said Ted Sarandos, Chief Content Officer at Netflix. “The Batman origin story is sure to have massive global appeal so it is fitting that, along with Warner Television, we have created a new model for distributing a show that international and domestic audiences will love.”

While certain series have their seasons uploaded to Netflix fairly quickly after their finales (e.g. the third season of Scandal was up on Netflix this past May), it’s quite unusual to have a Netflix deal in place this early in a show’s life. Gotham is the first series in recent memory to have this kind of deal before it premiered and one would think that this makes it a renewal certainty. If estimations of how much Netflix is paying per episode ($1.75 million) prove true, FOX has quite a bit of motivation to look over any flat ratings or middling buzz the show may generate, though it’s not quite a slam dunk for Gotham given that it’s not an in-house production for the network. Were Gotham a FOX production, this deal might as well have been a multi-season renewal; still, regardless of which company produces Gotham, if the show proves to be a success, look for more deals like this in the future, albeit only for “sure thing” projects.

Created by Bruno Heller (Rome), Gotham follows Detective James Gordon (Ben McKenzie) as he makes his way through the ranks at Gotham City’s police department. Along with partner Harvey Bullock (Donal Logue), Gordon begins looking into the high profile murder of Thomas and Martha Wayne, spurred on by his friendship with the couple’s son Bruce. In addition to McKenzie and Logue, Gotham stars Jada Pinkett Smith (Set It Off), Robin Lord Taylor (Accepted), and David Mazouz (Touch).

The series premiere of Gotham is set to air Monday, September 22nd at 8:00 on FOX. You can check out a series trailer below.

Will you be watching Gotham? Does this deal mean that you’ll wait to stream the show when it comes available through Netflix rather than watching it live? Do you think this deal means that the show is a lock for renewal?