Netflix has signed a deal with Fox and Imagine Television to develop new episodes of beloved sitcom Arrested Development, which will be available exclusively to Netflix's U.S. subscribers in the first half of 2013. Fox and Imagine will co-produce the episodes, and it appears that Netflix will be covering at least part of the production costs.
The show's creator, Mitchell Hurwitz, hinted at a New York Festival event last month that the long-awaited Arrested Development movie was still in progress, and that a series of TV episodes were also being developed as a preamble to the film. “We’re basically hoping to do nine or 10 episodes, with almost one character per episode," Hurwitz said at the time.
Shortly thereafter, rumors surfaced that Netflix, Hulu and Showtime were in a bidding war to get the rights to broadcast the show’s new episodes. Hulu seemed the most likely candidate at the time, given the number of views its catalog of old Arrested Development clips and episodes has amassed to date.
Although Arrested Development was canceled for low performance in 2006, it has enjoyed a loyal following and an impressive online afterlife. It could help Netflix regain some of the subscribers it lost during a recent price hike.