Netflix Execs Want You To Know They Actually Don't Make Characters State the Plot

Perhaps the most pervasive news story of the year was the idea that Netflix asks writers and directors to have their characters state the plot so people on their phones know what's going on.

It even made a resurgence when Matt Damon and Ben Affleck sparked a firestorm by suggesting this isn’t just bad writing; they claimed it’s a Netflix mandate while promoting their new film The Rip on the Joe Rogan Experience.

The comment went viral, even landing as a punchline at the Oscars, where Conan O’Brien and Sterling K. Brown reimagined Casablanca as a Netflix original where Rick Blaine explains the "letters of transit" every five minutes.

But according to Netflix’s top brass, that's all fiction.

And they're sick of hearing about it.

Let's dive in.

The "Second-Screen" Defense

As reported by Variety, Netflix film chief Dan Lin didn't mince words when he took on the rumors during a press slate on Wednesday.

"There is no such principle," Lin stated. "I mean, if you watch our movies or TV shows, we don't repeat our plot. So I don't know where that comment came from. Certainly, we are focused on making great movies."

Lin said that while the executive team laughed at the Oscars sketch, the implication that they are intentionally degrading the quality of their scripts to cater to "second-screen" viewers is something they take personally.

Meet the "Exposition Police"

On the call, you even had scripted series head Jinny Howe flip the narrative entirely. She joked that Chief Content Officer Bela Bajaria is actually “kind of exposition police and very against being overly explainer about things… We know how savvy the audiences are. We know how much fans are paying attention, and we are really treating them as they are sophisticated and as smart as they are.”

Bajaria added, “I think it’s so offensive to creators and filmmakers, to think that first of all, we would give them a bad note like that, and they would just take it.”

I can see why this makes them upset. They want to attract filmmakers to work with, and they don't want an entire platform getting a bad wrap.

Lots of these ideas wind up being miscommunications, and powerhouses like Netflix will want to maintain good public perception, so people tune into their movies, as the titles don't get overly scrutinized.

We'll see if anything else comes from this story.

For what it's worth, they're still working with Matt and Ben, so I don't think these stories really hurt them that much.

Summing It All Up

Is Netflix actually the "Exposition Police," or is there some truth to Damon and Affleck’s "repeat it four times" claim?

The truth usually lies somewhere in the middle of the development process.

The only thing that's undeniable is that no matter what you make and where you show it, you're always fighting against people looking at their phones and trying to find ways to hold their attention.

Let me know what you think in the comments.