Streaming columnist NICK OVERALL says Netflix has confirmed it has begun production on one of its biggest shows to ever be filmed downunder.

WHETHER it’s the sweeping plains of Montana in “Yellowstone” or the towering skyscrapers of Manhattan in “Succession”, watching dysfunctional families duke it out to claim victory over their pack has become a sure-fire streaming hit.

Now, Australia could have its own answer to such prestige television.

Netflix has confirmed it has begun production on one of its biggest shows to ever be filmed downunder.

“Desert King” is a six-episode neo-western series being shot and produced in SA and the NT that will be about “power, family, land and legacy”, or so says its official synopsis.

“When the world’s largest cattle station is left without a clear successor, generational clashes threaten to tear the Lawson family apart. Sensing this once great dynasty is in decline, the outback’s most powerful factions – rival cattle barons, desert gangsters, indigenous elders and billionaire miners – move in for the kill.”

Sound familiar?

Netflix has clearly seen the potential in shows like “Yellowstone” and has decided that Australia is the ticket to securing its own dynastic battle blockbuster.

There’s certainly no shortage of homegrown talent attached to the production.

The show has been created by Tim Lee who wrote for another Australian TV western “Mystery Road” (on ABC iView and Amazon Prime Video). The show will also bring in producing talent from “The True History of The Kelly Gang” (on Stan) and will be directed by Greg McLean, famous for his 2005 Aussie horror thriller “Wolf Creek” (Stan and Paramount Plus).

As for the casting it’s all hush-hush at the moment, but given the off-camera talent it seems we can expect some big names on screen.

Will “Desert King” be able to compete with the shows that have clearly inspired it?

Netflix thinks so, with director of content Que Minh Luu calling it “the ultimate tale of big land, big money and all the high stakes drama that comes with it.

“We’re working with some of Australia’s leading creators and crew to bring to life a version of this country we’re proud to show to our members both here at home and around the world.”

A blockbuster show like this is exactly what Australia’s film and TV industry needs after taking a big hit due to the ongoing writers strike.

The major protest in the US over pay for pen talent has impacted multiple Australian productions. NBC Universal had planned to shoot its new $200 million sci-fi series “Metropolis” in Melbourne, but it’s now been axed. 

The eight-part series based on the 1927 classic film of the same name was set to stream on Apple TV Plus, employ more than 700 people and be one of the biggest productions to ever hit Australia.

Production on the $80 million series “Apples Never Fall” has also been held up due to the strikes. The show secured the talent of Sam Neill and began filming in Queensland in March, only to now have been stopped dead in its tracks.

All of this has also come as the federal government delays its long-awaited bill to impose content quotas for streaming platforms operating in Australia.

Under the proposed legislation mega companies such as Netflix, Disney Plus, Amazon Prime Video and more would be obligated to produce a certain amount of Australian film and television every year if they want to continue to sling subscriptions downunder. Netflix alone currently has more than six million Australian subscribers. 

The government now wants to impose those rules by July 2024 and streaming giants are already rushing to churn out more Aussie productions in the meantime.

On top of “Desert King”, Netflix last month confirmed four major productions to go ahead in Australia for this year. Meanwhile, Disney Plus has also promised a spate of series’ including an “Oliver Twist” spin-off “The Artful Dodger”, filmed in Sydney and hitting the platform next month.

It’s an interesting time indeed for film and TV in Australia, with the next few years determining where it will find itself amongst an industry changing day-by-day.

Who knows? Maybe “Desert King” might be next to sit the streaming throne.