A scene from "Star Wars: Tales of the Jedi," season 1 exclusively on Disney+. Photo: Lucasfilm
Disney+ hopes to capitalize on the popularity of Star Wars and the attention span of the TikTok generation with a new 90-minute-long animated TV series, “Tales of the Jedi," out this week.
Why it matters: The popular platform — which has become a streaming rival of Netflix — is seeking to grow its audience by making content easier for the TikTok generation to digest, which could lead to more subscribers and revenue down the road.
Driving the news: All six episodes — which Axios was sent ahead of Wednesday's premiere date — show that "Tales" is an apt name for the series.
- Aside from giving fans a better look at "Star Wars" characters Ahsoka Tano and Count Dooku, the show has a unique format — 14- to 15-minute episodes that are nuggets of a larger story.
Flashback: Star Wars and Disney+ already tested this format with the anime-based "Star Wars: Visions" show, which told seven stories over a 2.5-hour span.
- Disney+ did something similar with the animated Marvel show, “I am Groot,” earlier this summer. The show included five episodes told over the course of 20 minutes.
- The show was tailor-made for those who want a little dose of Marvel without committing multiple hours to it. It's consumable in one sitting using your phone.
And let's not forget the recent "She-Hulk," which had nine episodes of roughly 30 minutes each. Other Disney+ Marvel shows have six episodes that range from 45 minutes to an hour. The "She-Hulk" episodes were shorter and easier to digest for on-the-go viewers.
The bottom line: These shorter series seem aimed at generations who don't have time for long shows and prefer something simple to watch. And that might be exactly what Disney+ needs to secure more revenue.