The new season of the IKEA backed web series, which kicks off today, is a classic season long face-off. Picking up essentially were things left off last season, Illeana Douglas and Justine Bateman both still work at the Burbank IKEA store, playing themselves “in between acting jobs.” The rivalry of the two celeb employees squares off around the coveted Co-worker of the Year title, the retail equivalent of queen bee. It’s a 40 year-old’s Blair vs. Serena.
For the dozens of web video folks at the event, there was a underlying buzz that Hollywood is starting to take notice. It had that blend of celebrity, both online and off, last seen at the Streamy Awards. The fusion on the red carpet of web stars and traditional celebs kept the publicists extra busy, but ultimately scored the event a win in both camps. It was easy to forget this was a premiere for a web series.
Ask a Ninja creators Kent Nichols and Doug Sarine make more than just a cameo midway through the season, playing themselves and eventually making a special pro-Illeana video with the Ninja. Other cast members on hand at the premiere were Tom Arnold, Daryl Sabara, Sean Durrie, Cheri Oteri, Kent Nichols, Michael Irpino (who came in full costume), Todd Spahr and Rob Mailhouse.
All ten episodes of the new season were screened to the 500 or so attendees, including two episodes of the faux-vintage spin-off series Sparhüsen which stars Keanu Reeves as the famed Swedish rock producer Vorste Fierron. Word is that Reeves is on board for more episodes of Sparhüsen and production is set to begin on those next month.
For Easy to Assemble, it’s a wide release of the series, led by My Damn Channel who had signed the series for the new season earlier this summer. CJP Digital which is handling sponsor and distribution for the show, also just locked a deal with The Hotel Networks, putting the show as a VOD offering in 1.9 million hotel rooms in the US and Canada starting in January. Other distribution includes Blip.tv, which will have it pushed wide through its pacts with Verizon FiOS and Roku set-top boxes.
New episodes of Easy to Assemble come out every Thursday through December. A special finale episode will be released after viewers vote to determine who will win Co-Worker of the Year between the two ladies.
Top photo by Todd Williamson, licensed from Getty Images.
TikTok and Universal Music Group (UMG) have settled their dispute. The two parties have agreed on a…
Amidst political turmoil in the U.S. and abroad, TikTok addressed brand and agency representatives at the 2024 NewFronts.…
Amidst a chaotic week at TikTok, the app took some time to acknowledge its growing community…
Nothing, Except Everything is getting a big-screen treatment. That's the name of a short film that…
Welcome to Creators on the Rise, where we find and profile breakout creators who are…
A major player in the burgeoning newsletter industry has made a sizable addition to its…