Long-Running, Recently Cancelled Soaps May Start Going Online

In 2011, production company Prospect Park vowed to take two cancelled soap operas–All My Children and One Life To Live–online, where they could continue as web series. A few months later, Prospect Park abandoned the project after their funds dried up and they struggled to work with writer’s unions. However, more than a year after that failure, Prospect Park is giving it another shot, with plans to continue the two soaps in 2013.

Prospect Park still has to work with the writer’s unions, but if they can get over that logistical hump they should be home free. Filming is expected to begin in a few months, so long as the project doesn’t get nixed once again.

All My Children ran for 41 years before being cancelled in 2011. One Life To Live made it all the way to 43 before ABC dropped it earlier this year.

If you think about it, the web series format is perfect for soap operas. All My Children and One Life To Live were cancelled because daytime TV audiences showed more interested in reality TV and talk shows such as The View (as a shameless Maury fan, I don’t blame them.) On the web, however, viewers could tune in whenever they want, allowing soap fans to easily catch up with past episodes instead of getting lost in a sea of missed plotlines. The Internet has also proven to be a great place for niche markets, with the vibrant LGBT web series community serving as a great example. If Prospect Park can work with the guilds that doomed them last time, they could have two serious hits on their hands.