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The premiere of The Last King of the Cross – one of the biggest Australian TV dramas of the year – went almost unnoticed overnight.
Was it because the show is a dud? No, far from it. The Paramount+ drama, starring Lincoln Younes as a young John Ibrahim and based on the nightclub owner’s autobiography of the same name, is already receiving rave reviews.
The reason why the star-studded event, held across multiple levels of Potts Point club Maali, wasn’t splashed across every website, breakfast TV show and even the front pages of newspapers was because a good portion of the press didn’t even know it was happening – until the last minute.
Paparazzi agencies who usually cover these red carpets were not told about it, so photos of the celebrity arrivals weren’t filed to news outlets.
Paramount instead handled the photography themselves, then distributed the pictures to a small number of outlets, including industry websites and a newspaper – a baffling decision given the ageing demographic of newspaper readers and the limited reach of the trade press.
The premiere of The Last King of the Cross – one of the biggest Australian TV dramas of the year – went almost unnoticed by the media overnight despite its star-studded guest list, including Kyle Sandilands (left) and his fiancée Tegan Kynaston (right)
What’s more, only a small group of journalists was invited to interview the stars of the show – which is said to be one of the most expensive TV dramas ever produced in Australia with a rumoured budget of $40million – and other celebrity guests.
The only reason Daily Mail Australia published photos of the event was because a intrepid reporter and a paparazzo were tipped off and rushed to the premiere.
This publication did not receive the official photos until 10:30am on Friday morning, after making enquiries to Paramount’s publicity department.
As for the headline-making imagery that captured the debaucherous theme of the party, including scantily clad dancers throwing dollar bills over arriving guests, the only glimpses of this could be found in videos on KIIS FM’s social media channels.
Meanwhile, every attempt by our journalist to approach the talent at the event was rebuffed by overzealous security and PR types.
Fortunately, the show’s executive producer Kyle Sandilands realised something was amiss and crossed the road to speak with reporter Ali Daher.
If the press had been allowed inside, it’s fair to say the premiere would have been a media extravaganza, with coverage spilling across the whole weekend.
Radio superstar Sandilands, who executive produced the show, was the emcee as the red-draped Maali was transformed into a late ’90s Kings Cross paradise complete with motorbikes, a DJ, Pinocchio’s pizza, pole dancing, a bordello and a fake bomb scare for guests.
So why would a media giant like Paramount-Channel 10 seemingly go out of its way to stage a muted launch for one of its biggest shows of the year?
After all, the premiere itself looked like it was a cracker party.
Well, the answer to that question could lie in Ten’s hostile and ultimately self-defeating relationship with the press and constant siege mentality.
This is a station which sometimes acts as if it’s a taxpayer-funded broadcaster such as the ABC and doesn’t need to worry about ratings or success, as it frequently promotes elite causes of little interest to its core audience.
Just look at the The Project. A decade ago it was a must-watch snapshot of young funky and cool Australia. The viewers moved on, but Ten continues to blindly chase young, progressive audience that’s migrated to streaming.
The reason why the star-studded event at Potts Point club Maali wasn’t splashed across the front pages of every newspaper was because a good portion of the press didn’t even know it was happening until the last minute. Paramount Australia boss Beverley McGarvey (second from left) was one of the guests at the premiere
There was just a small group of journalists invited to interview the show’s stars and other celebrity guests. The press assembly, including Paramount and KIIS FM staff, is seen here
As for the headline-making imagery that captured the debaucherous theme of the party, including scantily clad dancers throwing dollar bills over arriving guests, the only glimpses of this could be found in videos on KIIS FM’s social media channels
Ten’s relationship with the press has been deteriorating for years.
Write a story that is anything but undiluted praise and access to shows before they air is withdrawn, interviews are cancelled, and reporters are frozen out. It goes on.
They even took Daily Mail Australia to court because we ran a Bachelorette spoiler seven years ago.
Why do this? Probably because the network blames the media for its bad ratings rather than looking at its own ham-fisted programming decisions.
No other Australian television network does this.
You may get the occasional snappy email for a negative story, but for the most part, publicists for Nine, Seven, Foxtel and even the ABC treat the press with respect because they actually want stories, good or bad, to be written about their shows.
In TV, the old axiom first quoted by Oscar Wilde more than 100 years ago still rings true: ‘The only thing worse than being talked about is not being talked about at all.’
Last King of the Cross tells the story of John Ibrahim’s rise to power in the Kings Cross nightclub scene during the ’90s and early 2000s. (Pictured: actor Lincoln Younes)
Ten’s closed-shop attitude to the press is particularly baffling considering how badly it needs its partnership with Paramount+ to be successful.
Having laid off its Australian streaming staff last week, Paramount+ is the network’s last hope for any success in the ultra-competitive local streaming market.
The ABC had a head start with iview, Seven has 7plus, Nine has 9Now and the wildly successful and innovative Stan – while Ten is worryingly late to the party.
As the networks battle for the future of entertainment, why would you try to keep the press away from the launch of a major streaming show?
A red carpet with photographers is like a pub with no beer. It beggars belief.
While you may not have read much about the launch of The Last King of the Cross last night, rest assured, it’s a good watch. The 10-part drama launches on Paramount+ today.
A Paramount ANZ spokesperson issued a snarky statement on Friday: ‘We were thrilled to have Daily Mail team members, social media influencers and key entertainment media at the epic launch party for the Paramount+ original series Last King of The Cross last night which dropped on the service today.
‘The evening really captured the gritty and enthralling series which was peppered with a plethora of engaging, unique and authentic social media moments.’
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