After Life’s Ricky Gervais has said that he doesn’t think “anything can compete” with making television for Netflix, revealing that terrestrial channels can’t give him the same amount of freedom and global audience as the streamer.
Speaking to The Radio Times Podcast, Gervais said that he has nothing against the likes of BBC One and ITV, but he wasn’t sure whether he would make a show for terrestrial television in the future, saying that “it doesn’t quite suit [him]”.
“I like to do my own thing and be left alone and traditionally to get that final edit and be left alone, I had to compromise a bit on where I went. I went to BBC Two instead of BBC One because I could make the show I wanted more and BBC One would interfere, I think.
“I went to Channel 4 instead of ITV, I went to HBO instead of NBC. But then Netflix come along and say, ‘We don’t interfere either, we’re the biggest platform in the world, you’ll get more viewers. We don’t interfere. You get more money.’ It’s a no-brainer.”
He continued: “I don’t think anything can compete with the freedom and the business model that Netflix give me at the moment. But if they did, I’d consider it.
“If suddenly the BBC gave me the same deal as Netflix… I can’t imagine they could. But no, I’ve got nothing against terrestrial television at all.
“It’s global as well. Netflix is automatically global. It just ticks every single box for me at the moment. So, there’s no principle involved. It’s just nothing can compete with it at the moment.”
Gervais currently stars in After Life, the National Television Award-winning black comedy-drama he created for Netflix about a newspaper writer dealing with the death of his wife.
The third season is set to arrive on the streamer on Friday 14th January, with Penelope Wilton, Ashley Jensen, Joe Wilkinson and Diane Morgan all set to return.
You can listen to The Radio Times Podcast on RadioTimes.com or wherever you find your podcasts. Check out our guides to the best series on Netflix and the best movies on Netflix, or check out our TV Guide if you’re looking for something else to watch.