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Studios, award shows and agencies are increasingly working with creators as digital talent becomes central to entertainment. 

Why it matters: Hollywood's hierarchy is changing as digital creators become the next A-listers and studios adapt to younger generations' fandom and content habits.

The big picture: Creators once sought Hollywood validation by trying to land a movie role or TV show. But the power dynamic has shifted as creators have built their own studios and created media empires on platforms like YouTube.

Mind Chatter Media founder Adam Wescott, who has long worked with digital-first talent and represented YouTubers like Gigi Gorgeous, said there is a playbook today for outlasting 15 minutes of fame.

"You now have career creators that are coming into this to build businesses and acting as entrepreneurs and using MrBeast as the North Star," Wescott says. "They're thinking about it from Day 1."

Mark Fischbach, a longtime YouTuber known as Markiplier, proved that power shift with the success of his self-distributed film "Iron Lung." The movie made about $18 million domestically in its opening weekend, with costs of only $3 million.

State of play: Major studios have signed deals with creators in recent months.

Alan Chikin Chow, who has nearly 100 million YouTube subscribers, is partnering with Netflix on a scripted series about building the next K-pop sensation. 

Dhar Mann Studios is partnering with Fox Entertainment to create and produce 40 microdramas. The digital content creation company said it has generated about 20 billion views across platforms and operates its own production facility in Burbank.

MrBeast has worked with Amazon MGM Studios on "Beast Games," a competition series for Prime Video. The second season was released last month. 

Between the lines: Hollywood has granted creators greater creative autonomy as it begins to take digital talent more seriously.

"Before, it was creator plus audience equals eyeballs, which I don't think always makes sense," CAA talent agent Avi Wasserman. "They wouldn't allow the creator to do the things to get the audience to follow them."

Dhar Mann Studios CEO Sean Atkins says studios and creators are "coming to the table with much more of a partnership perspective, not the expectation that creators are sitting there dying to become the next TV producer."

Zoom out: Traditional Hollywood institutions are adapting their businesses to this new era. 

The Golden Globes added a podcast category, signaling a broader recognition of digital-first storytelling.

CAA established CAA Creators, uniting its digital media and podcast teams to represent digital video and audio creators. It hired digital media veteran Greg Goodfried in December. 

What's next: Hollywood is looking into short-serialized content designed for digital-native audiences, an area where creators are innovating.

"What microdramas discovered is that audiences would like their scripted stories given to them in that dramatic cadence," Second Rodeo CEO Scott Brown says. "Every single minute, a plot point is going to occur and the story will move forward."

"Audiences don't have a lot of patience to know if something is worth the investment of their time," Brown adds.

Legacy TV leans on creators to boost viewership

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TikTok and Spotify are changing music discovery as artists build community

Retailers bet on staffers and creators to drive sales

Hollywood makes room for creators

Studios, agencies and awards shows are reorganizing for the creator era.

Photo illustration of the Hollywood sign surrounded by circles and money elements.

Photo illustration: Lindsey Bailey/Axios. Photo: Patrick T. Fallon/Getty Images

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Studios, award shows and agencies are increasingly working with creators as digital talent becomes central to entertainment. Why it matters: Hollywood&#x27;s hierarchy is changing as <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="digital creators" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/media-trends-membership/2025/12/06/creators-middle-east-global-followers" data-vars-content-id="15a09c8f-908d-4274-a55b-599a847180db" data-vars-headline="Hollywood makes room for creators" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/media-trends-membership/2025/12/06/creators-middle-east-global-followers" target="_self">digital creators</a> become the next A-listers and studios adapt to younger generations&#x27; fandom and content habits.

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Hollywood makes room for creators

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