On today’s episode of Variety’s “Strictly Business” podcast, Wonder Project CEO Kelly Merryman Hoogstraten talks about the subscription streaming platform the company launched with Amazon last month and how it strengthens the indie studio’s exclusive content brand.
Hoogstraten launched the company in late 2023 with film director John Irwin. The company’s rapid growth within two years has reaffirmed her belief that there is a market for themed movies and television shows that incorporate faith, spirituality, family, and patriotism without explicitly branding them as faith-based content.
The Wonder Project subscription streaming platform, launched through the Amazon Prime Video platform, has gained a lot of attention in a short period of time.
“What I’ve learned over time is that success is a combination of people, strategy, and timing, and what we’ve been able to accomplish over the past two years is partly because our time has come. I’m happy to be a steward leading this company at this time, and part of that was the first-look deal with Amazon that we announced in January 2024,” Hoogstraten said.
“We and Amazon were really excited about finding a way to leverage this audience. It’s been a month now and we’re just amazed at the excitement and engagement we’re seeing from this audience. And we’re also a production company that sells shows within Hollywood, and we feel like having partners like Amazon, Sony, TriStar, Angel Studios, etc. will really help us, so this “We really understand our audience and we want to show that they’re everywhere. And this is great evidence for us to showcase and share with them that we know how to reach and speak to our audience and that this brand really stands for something,” she says.
