A plan to give thousands of classic Neighbours episodes a new look has sparked concern among fans of the long-running Australian soap.
Almost a year after Neighbours ended its original run, Fremantle has announced a partnership with vertical TV platform RoseBerry to rework more than 9,000 episodes for viewing on mobile phones.
The new episodes will be presented vertically rather than in the traditional landscape format and will be shorter, focusing on individual characters rather than multiple storylines.
The first episodes are expected to centre on Donna Freedman, the character played by Margot Robbie before she became an international film star.
The announcement comes after Neighbours was recently recognised as Australia’s favourite television show of the past 70 years in a national poll, highlighting the enduring affection for the series and its characters.
However, the latest plans have received a very different response from some viewers, particularly over the use of artificial intelligence to alter the archive footage.
“More AI slop,” one person wrote online.
“This is gross in my opinion. There’s something really unseemly about it that I can’t quite put my finger on,” another said.
“Who asked for this?” a third wrote.
Fremantle’s Jens Richter said the project would give the show’s extensive archive a new way to reach audiences.
“Neighbours has an extraordinary legacy, with decades of memorable characters, stories and talent,” he said.
“Working with RoseBerry allows us to explore incredible archive in an entirely new way, bringing much-loved IP to new audiences while demonstrating how established television libraries can continue to evolve, find new relevance and importantly create new commercial opportunities.
“It’s an exciting example of how technology and creative thinking can unlock new value from our diverse catalogue and content library.”
The reworked episodes will be available through streaming service epis, which offers short-form content in a vertical format.
A subscription costs between $14.99 and $29.99 a week, or $49.99 a month, with other television programs from services including Netflix and the BBC also available in vertical formats.
A release date for the new Neighbours episodes has not yet been announced.
Image: Fremantle
