Disney is preparing a new late-night offering that will feature some of the biggest stars in gaming and streaming content creation. The new programming block is set to air on Disney XD between 9PM and 3AM daily. Disney is calling the block ‘D|XP’ and will transform the popular kid’s network into entertainment featuring shows geared towards the YouTube and Twitch crowds.
Jimmy Wong, of YouTube and TV fame, will be the host of one of the new offerings on the block called Polaris Primetime. He describes it:
It’s a variety show for gamers. We have couches and big tvs and we play games, we have game trivia, we have skits that we perform and ones we’ve recorded. It’s a lot of fun. We’re trying to bring the same style as the content creators out there, where it’s about the reactions. The show really does have a background cast of influencers and popular personalities.
Wong is no stranger to content creation; he rose to fame with his 2011 music video ‘Ching Chong: Asians in the Library Song‘ though many may remember him as Ted from the web series Video Game High School.
The star says he’s excited for the new show because he believes it is something different than other offerings. His initial guests include well-known YouTube personalities Alex Wassabi and Anthony Padilla, among others. The show will also have well known offline celebrities like Marcus Scribner from the hit show Blackish and Karl-Anthony Towns an NBA player. Wong says the show is designed to be a hybrid between traditional television production and content-creator style interaction:
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As far as shows like this go, the heart of this is definitely in the background people. We’re really trying to maintain the mindset of that content creator’s point of view. I wouldn’t feel right if I was doing a show and I didn’t get to have a camera in my hand getting my own reactions. So we’re trying to bridge this gap – and it’s a tough gap to bridge – between the streaming stuff that’s always out there and the real production of what we have. There’s, I’m not sure, a staff of 80 people – I’m guessing here – that work on this show, but it will appeal to people used to getting their content online.
He understands the difficulties of television networks and the changing demographics as well. Wong isn’t an overnight success:
This show is the result of seven years of hard work and networking. I know it’s tough to say ‘hey, you watch everything online but go a get a subscription so you can watch this show.’ So I’m saying just check it out, watch the videos or catch it at a friend’s house. It’s going to be great, and it’s part of an entire block of programming that comes on every day that will really try to bridge that gap for you.
Polaris Primetime debuts on Disney’s D|XP July 15th.
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