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Long before AI could write scripts and edit video, a small group of television executives decided what tens of millions of people would watch. Among them were legendary figures like Fred Silverman, who lorded over Saturday morning cartoons, and Brandon Tartikoff, who made NBC a ratings powerhouse with prime-time hits like Seinfeld.
Television veteran Kevin Reilly came of age in that world. He was hired and mentored by Tartikoff in the late 1980s and would go on to champion some of the most defining shows of the broadcast era, including The Office, 30 Rock and Glee.
As the head of entertainment at NBC and Fox, and later chief content officer at HBO Max, Reilly saw Hollywood slow to respond to the rise of streaming. Today, as the CEO of Kartel, an AI-content creation platform, he says everything about the way content is made and distributed is about to change. But one thing remains the same: attention.
“Sex will sell — now, tomorrow and long after we’re gone," he said, echoing a point advertising pioneer Sir Martin Sorrell made in our recent interview.
Here are seven ways that adage holds true as AI reshapes the media landscape.
Storytelling works the way it always has, through tension, attraction, curiosity and emotional payoff. “We still want to be delighted,” Reilly said. AI may accelerate production, but it doesn’t change what people respond to.
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Beyond provocation, sex acts as a shorthand for desire, identity and aspiration: a glamorous character conveys status and confidence, while a romantic storyline evokes connection and longing.
Brands and shows that endure also build something deeper.
“They’re not just selling sex," Reilly said. "They’re selling something iconic.”
During the broadcast era, distribution was largely guaranteed. At its peak, American Idol drew close to 40 million viewers. But even just a few years later, a defining cable drama like Mad Men topped out around 4 million.
“We made more money in American Idol in one hour of one night, than the rest of the network combined," he said.
Those days are gone. But the principles haven’t changed: you are still telling a story and trying to connect with an audience.
“The age of the empowered, informed and always-on consumer has been here for decades,” Reilly said. The questions — are they engaging, are they buying — remain the same.
AI is already present in writers’ rooms.
“No one is staring at a blank page anymore,” Reilly said.
AI is being used as a tool for ideation, structure and iteration, but not a shortcut to success.
“You can’t just tell AI, ‘people love clouds and puppies,’ and expect a hit,” he said.
AI may speed the process, but human insight is still needed to shape something meaningful.
Television has always driven commerce — from toys to fashion.
Just as He-Man helped fuel a cartoon genre to sell toys to kids, Reilly sees that loop tightening.
“There’s a canary in the coal mine for fashion,” he said, referring to the rise of fast fashion as a warning to brands that still operate on seasonal schedules rather than real-time data.
One can imagine a company like Fashion Nova teaming up with a streaming network to let viewers buy clothes directly from shows they’re watching, simply by asking their device. The technology already exists. The constraint is fulfillment. Given the speed at which fast fashion iterates, they are well positioned to deliver products in the right size, color and style consumers want, faster and cheaper than traditional retailers.
For decades, television relied on research that often missed the mark.
“We had research, but most of it was a waste of time,” he said.
Today’s data is faster and more actionable, but it still can’t predict cultural impact.
Shows like The Office struggled early on and might not have survived in a purely data-driven system.
Data can inform decisions, but it doesn’t determine what resonates.
The old system was defined by scarcity, limited distribution, few decision makers and mass audiences. AI is now lowering the barrier to entry and enabling creators to produce, distribute and monetize content for their fans. That shift doesn’t change what works, it democratizes who gets to try.
Reilly believes the creator economy is where the studios of tomorrow will emerge.
In the end, you can’t fight change, he said.
AI is here. But the fundamentals remain. We still want to be surprised. We still want to feel something. We still want to care. The tools, distribution and power structure have shifted. But the instincts that make us human haven’t.
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