Amazon Prime Video is expanding its Indian catalogue through a newly-signed partnership with Paramount Global Content Distribution. The four key highlights of the deal include exclusive Paramount TV series’, namely Star Trek: Discovery, The Stand, Mayor of Kingstown, and the Yellowstone prequel series 1883. The new content will be included as part of your general subscription, at no extra cost. Out of those, the space-set Star Trek: Discovery was formerly available on Netflix in India but got pulled from the platform ahead of season 4’s debut. This new deal brings all four seasons of the Sonequa Martin-Green-led space odyssey to Prime Video and should serve as India’s destination for when season 5 premieres next year.
Star Trek: Discovery season 5 was originally slated to release in early 2023, but got delayed into early 2024. Production on the final season wrapped in November 2022, but requires some additional filming, as Paramount plans to send off the show ‘in style.’ A first-look trailer for the same was dropped last year, which revealed that our crew is on the hunt for an ‘ancient power’ whose existence was kept deliberately hidden for centuries. “We are delighted to announce that a curated selection of Paramount Global content is available for streaming to Prime members in India at no extra cost,” Manish Menghani, Director, Content Licensing, Prime Video India said in a prepared statement. “The slate includes a diverse mix of genres from fantasy and adventure to drama and sci-fi, with each show featuring a stellar cast.”
The Jeremy Renner-led Mayor of Kingstown follows the McLusky family, power brokers who have been maintaining peace in the titular town for decades, acting as moderators between cops and street gangs. Created by Taylor Sheridan, currently only season 1 is available on Amazon Prime Video.
Serving as a prequel to Yellowstone, 1883 captures the origin story of the Dutton family as they embark on a journey west through the Great Plains in order to seek better lives.
Based on the eponymous 1978 novel by Stephen King, The Stand is set in an apocalyptic world decimated by plague, whose fate rests on the shoulders of a 108-year-old Mother Abagail. The series stars Whoopi Goldberg and Alexander Skarsgård (The Northman).
The deal also brings other popular shows such as Californication, Michael C. Hall-led Dexter, Julianna Margulies starrer The Good Wife, NCIS, Blue Bloods, The Good Fight, Madam Secretary, Reign, The Great, Seal Team, Under the Dome, Munich Games, and Parot.
Earlier this month, Amazon partnered with India’s federal government to stream content from state-run studios as well as provide internships to students from government film institutes in a key market for the US e-commerce giant. Amazon India will also introduce a ‘special feature’ to promote any books and journals recommended by the government.