Building Castles in the Air: The Rise and Fall of Viaplay’s Dutch Scripted Slate

This article examines the rise and fall of Viaplay’s Dutch scripted slate as a case study of “streaming precarity” in Europe. Drawing on seven interviews with producers, screenwriters, and Viaplay executives, alongside trade press and industry reports, we combine production cultures research with “failure studies” and “unproduction studies” to examine cancelled projects. We find that Viaplay was perceived as a European alternative to US streamers, shaping industry expectations and trust, before being upended by sudden cancellations in 2023 amid financial crisis. We reflect on “failure” as a complex characteristic of streamer imaginaries, encompassing breakdowns in production, financing, or distribution, even for completed series and still-active streamers. We argue that streaming intensifies already precarious film and television production through instability, unfavorable contractual practices and remuneration models, and data secrecy, with harmful consequences for freelance crew especially. Viaplay’s Dutch cancellations are thus understood as a case study of the streaming market shift.