What Ninja's New Deal Really Means For The Future
These days, it's an exciting time to be a fan of Tyler "Ninja" Blevins. Not only has the streamer officially signed a new multi-year contract with Twitch, bringing him back to his original streaming home, but it appears as though he has no intentions of slowing down. Ninja may soon be coming to a television or movie theater near you.
The Hollywood Reporter has just revealed that Ninja has signed a contract with CAA, which officially represent him "in all areas" of the entertainment industry. CAA, for those who aren't aware, is the Creative Arts Agency, which is based out of Los Angeles. This talent agency represents performers and creators in several different fields, including musicians, athletes, directors, actors, and fashion designers.
According to CAA, "With a passion matched only by that of our clients, CAA is committed to crafting precedent-setting deals and building new brands and businesses driven by our clients' ideas, interests, and opportunities." Streamers don't really get more passionate than Ninja, a guy who is notorious for wearing his emotions on his sleeve. It sounds like he may be a perfect fit for CAA's talent roster.
The Hollywood Reporter notes that Ninja's day-to-day apparently won't change too much. While CAA will be handling Ninja's talent representation, he will retain the same legal team. Ninja's wife, Jessica Blevins, will also continue in her duties as his manager.
This latest announcement regarding Ninja's career path is exciting for fans, but not exactly surprising. In fact, Ninja's signing with CAA seems to be perfectly in line with the direction the streamer has been heading in for some time.
Ninja has been through a tumultuous year, to say the very least. Back in June, when Microsoft shuttered its Mixer streaming platform, Ninja was one of many streamers who suddenly found themselves without a platform. Although Ninja and fellow streamer Shroud were offered an opportunity to move from Mixer to Facebook Gaming, both streamers reportedly turned down that offer and were subsequently bought out of their contracts. According to games industry insider and journalist Rod "Slasher" Breslau, both streamers received a hefty paycheck when they walked away from Facebook Gaming.
For a few months, Ninja streamed much less, popping up in a few random places. He surprised fans with an impromptu Facebook stream, then went live on his old Twitch channel. Last month, Ninja finally announced that he had found a permanent streaming home, bringing things full circle by signing a new exclusive deal with Twitch.
Despite the fact that Ninja ceased regular streams for a few months, he did not slow down his productivity at all. In fact, it appears as though Ninja spent his time away from the spotlight actively pursuing his other interests.
In Aug. 2020, Ninja revealed his biggest goal yet: he had set his sights on an acting career. According to an interview with The Hollywood Reporter's Natalie Jarvey, Ninja has been seeking out all kinds of acting roles. He said he's ready to work on "literally anything and everything Hollywood ... Movies, voice acting, cartoons." It's worth noting that Ninja did shoot a scene for last year's Jumanji: The Next Level, but it was ultimately cut. Despite this, he continued to pursue other projects, including a truly bizarre appearance on the reality competition series The Masked Singer. Ninja has also filmed a cameo in the upcoming Ryan Reynolds video game comedy, Free Guy.
Free Guy was originally intended for a Summer 2020 release, but public health concerns stemming from COVID-19 has led to the film being delayed until the winter. It should be worth the wait for video game fans, however. Not only is the film a spoof of video game tropes, but it will feature cameos from multiple recognizable streamers, such as Jacksepticeye and Pokimane.
It's difficult to say how soon fans can expect to see Ninja in other film and television projects. However, Ninja is clearly ready to get started. On Twitter, Ninja announced to his fans, "Super excited for this next chapter in my career. Officially signed with CAA!"
Ninja's Twitter announcement was met with congratulations from several fellow content creators. Twitch streamer KyleThatKyle remarked, "Congrats dude! A big step and a great move for the industry as a whole." StoneMountain64 tweeted, "[W]elcome to the fam. Big stuff coming for sure!" StoneMountain64's excitement is understandable, considering he was one of the first gaming influencers to sign a deal with CAA.
Despite a few setbacks, it looks Ninja is poised to make his Hollywood dreams a reality.