Summary
Arcaneis currently airing its second and final season, but a recent report highlighted just how much of a financial cost the series has been for Riot Games.
Arcaneis Riot’s first foray into the world of television, with the company having previously collaborated on animated music videos and cinematics featuring itsLeague of Legendscharacters, but never a fully-fledged adaptation of its game. This all changed whenArcane, a series six years in the making, debuted on Netflix in 2021. Season 2 was announced shortly after, with the series taking a further three years until its release in November 2024. The most common praise forArcanepertains to its animation style,which blends 2D and 3D styles and pushes the boundaries of both to reach a new level of detail and visual prowess. However, all of this has come at a heavy financial cost.
Arcane’s Production Budget Revealed
In a report byVariety, sources claim the budget for two seasons ofArcane(which spans 18 episodes) will cost Riot approximately $250 million in total. This includes both production and marketing costs, makingArcaneby far themost expensive animated TV series of all time. Variety reported that the series would almost certainly not be profitable for Riot, as it recoups only $3 million per episode from Netflix’s worldwide licensing costs and a further $3 million from Tencent for distribution in China. Riot will apparently try and recoup costs via merchandising andLeague of Legendscosmetics for Season 2, although it’s unclear if even this will allow the series to break even. WhileArcane’s$250 million budget may seem eye-watering to many, the reality is that every cent was worth it.
All of Arcane’s Budget Is Visible on the Screen
Arcanehas been a pioneer in the animation space, with French animation studio Fortiche creating a visually distinct style that reflects character emotions, imagines a fantasy world, and portrays blockbuster action with a level of detail and care that has rarely been seen before. One need only take a scroll through fan reactions on social media or critic reviews to know thatArcane’sanimation style is reveredand beloved, and that doesn’t just happen overnight.
By the timeArcaneends, Riot and Fortiche will have spent close to nine years working on the series. Fortiche as a studio had to expand from 15 employees to around 300 to complete animation for Arcane Season 1. Those employees needed to be paid years of wages to perfect Arcane’s animation and the results have made Fortiche one of the most visually distinct animation studios working today.Riot’s investment in Fortichewas worth the money, as the studio will no doubt be in demand followingArcane’send, and Riot will likely get top priority given their existing partnership.
Arcane’s Budget Seems Normal When Compared To Other Blockbusters
Arcane’s$250 million budget also seems insignificant when compared to some of theblockbuster movies made in Hollywoodtoday. For example, 2018’sJurassic World: Fallen Kingdomwas reported to have cost $430 million, all for one 2-hour movie. WhileJurassic Worlddid manage to turn a profit at the box office, not all big-budget Hollywood films are so lucky.Joker: Folie à Deuxwas said to have a budgetof around $200 million and is expected to be a loss of around $100 million for Warner Bros. In comparison,Arcane’sbudget was spent producing 2 seasons worth of content and, while the series may not be profitable for Riot, it has been successful in so many ways beyond just money.
Why Arcane Was A Good Investment For Riot
Arcanehas earned a long list of achievements since its debut in 2021. Both Season 1 and 2 of the series have been widely praised by both critics, with each series scoring a perfect 100% score on Rotten Tomatoes. The series has accumulated a massive audience with both seasons ofArcaneclaiming a spot in Netflix’s Top 10 charts in 88 countries upon release.Arcanehas also won a long list of accolades, including nine Annie Awards, four Primetime Emmy Awards, andBest Adaptation at The Game Awards- and that was all just for Season 1.
Perhaps most importantly,Arcaneappeals to bothLeague of Legendsfans and complete newcomers to the franchise. The series has built an awareness of Riot’s game that may not have been possible without the Netflix adaptation. The release of other video game adaptations likeFalloutandThe Last of Ushad flow-on effectson their source material, with sales of these games skyrocketing around the series’ release. While Riot Games has not released any engagement numbers forLeague of LegendsfollowingArcane’srelease, the series has provided the franchise with a wealth of opportunity. It’s allowed for the roster of champions to be extended (such as theintroduction of Ambessa) and for a series of tie-in skins and cosmetics to be released, all of which can provide tangible revenue for Riot, even if the TV series does not.
Riot Shouldn’t Give Up The Entertainment Game
WhileArcanewill end with Season 2, creatives within Riot have been clear about the company’s commitment to its entertainment offerings. Some suspected thatArcane’sshort two-season run was due to its high budget, but rumors of anoriginal five-season planhave since been debunked.League of Legendsco-creator Marc Merill also reaffirmed to Variety the company is “more than comfortable with the spend it took to deliver a show that was worthy of our players’ time.” The main issue Riot has now is maintainingArcane’slevel of quality, with Riot’s president Dylan Jadeja revealing that “creating an entertainment portfolio with the standards we hold is… really hard.”
Nevertheless, the gamble paid off the first time for Riot and whileArcane’sbudget may have been high, it was not wasted. It paid animators for multiple years to create their art, provided the world with a cutting-edge visual animation style, and resulted in a series that will not be forgotten in a hurry.
ArcaneSeason 2 will come to an end on Netflix on November 23.
Arcane
Arcane is an animated series developed by Alex Yee and Christian Linke that follows a the story of Piltover and Zaun, two pivotal locations in the League of Legends universe. The first season follows the stories of Jynx and Vi, as well as Jayce and Viktor.
