For the second time in the span of a year, Louis C.K. has surprised the Internet with a TV series. “Horace and Pete,” C.K.’s series that he began dropping without warning on his website in January, is suddenly available on Hulu.
The 10-episode show, starring C.K., Steve Buscemi, and Alan Alda, had previously only been available for purchase on louisck.net. The pilot cost $5; the second cost $2; and the remainder were $3 each. Starting Jan. 30, C.K. released the episodes on Saturdays for 10 weeks, though the full season can be bought for a slightly discounted $31.
C.K. had told Howard Stern in April that he was millions of dollars in debt because of the show — each episode cost around $500,000 to make, and the number of downloads wasn’t quite what C.K. and producing partner M. Blair Breard expected. But because “Horace and Pete” was financed entirely by C.K., he’s the one that holds the rights — and thus can make a deal with Hulu that, along with the proceeds from continued sales on his site, ought to put C.K. back in the black.
The Hulu deal for “Horace and Pete” is an exclusive multi-year SVOD pact, though the series will still be available for purchase on C.K.’s site.
