Barstool Sports just made one risky gamble with scripted TV that could backfire spectacularly

Barstool Sports built an empire on beer-soaked sports takes and fraternity humor that made traditional media clutch their pearls.

Now they’re rolling the dice on their first scripted series – and the stakes couldn’t be higher.

And Barstool Sports just made one risky gamble with scripted TV that could backfire spectacularly.

Barstool’s big Hollywood swing

Barstool Sports is launching its first scripted series "Les Mascots" on Tuesday nights starting this week on their Out of Order YouTube channel.¹

The series centers on an aspiring filmmaker from LA who relocates to Manhattan. His mission? Creating a documentary about two wannabe actors – his uncle and an eccentric roommate – who pay rent by performing as beloved Sesame Street characters in Times Square.

Here’s the kicker. Tommy Smokes, one of the show’s creators, told Deadline they’re hoping Netflix eventually picks it up.

"Owen came up with the idea of doing a more scripted series where it was centered around these two characters, delusional actor types whose day job is that they are the Times Square Cookie Monster and Elmo," Smokes explained.²

But there’s a revealing detail buried in that interview.

According to Smokes, "They had always talked about doing a feature film and had a script for a movie, and decided that might be difficult."

Think about that. The company that supposedly revolutionized sports media abandoned their movie plans for a seven-episode series instead?

Something doesn’t add up here.

The reality check nobody’s talking about

Deadline’s Justin Kroll gushed that the show is "as seamless as anything you would see on a network that is constantly pumping out these shows on a weekly basis from the laugh out loud script to the high-quality cinematography."³

Even the article’s author had to pump the brakes on that hype train.

He admitted the trailer falls short of those lofty claims.

That’s journalist speak for "this looks pretty rough."

Barstool is betting their YouTube channel’s existing audience will tune in every Tuesday at 8 p.m. ET while they wait for Netflix to come calling.

But here’s what they’re not considering – Netflix just dropped $5 billion on WWE content and billions more on actual professional productions. They’re not scrolling through YouTube looking for Times Square Elmo documentaries.

Why this gamble could destroy their brand

The timing of this scripted series launch tells you everything. Barstool is simultaneously preparing for a major college football partnership with Fox Sports this season.⁴

The timing is no coincidence.

They just landed a major traditional media partnership and immediately started chasing scripted content dreams. The bro-culture empire that made its name mocking traditional media is now desperately trying to join the club.

Remember when Barstool’s whole appeal was being the anti-establishment alternative to stuffy sports media? Now they’re bragging about Fox Sports partnerships and producing sitcoms about struggling actors.

Owen Roeder came up with this concept for their Out of Order sketch comedy show. Instead of sticking to what Barstool does best – unfiltered sports commentary and viral content – they’re trying to compete with actual production companies.

Here’s the problem nobody wants to admit.

Sports fans who tune in for Barstool’s takes on the Patriots don’t automatically want to watch a scripted comedy about Times Square mascots. That’s not how audiences work.

***LANGUAGE***

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The graveyard of failed media pivots

BuzzFeed tried pivoting to serious news. Vice thought it could become HBO.

Now Barstool thinks it can become a scripted content powerhouse.

See the pattern?

Every digital media company eventually gets Hollywood fever. They build an audience doing one thing, get cocky, then blow it all trying to be something they’re not.

Barstool built an empire by being authentically themselves – crude, unfiltered, and laser-focused on sports and guy culture. This scripted series is like watching your favorite dive bar install a champagne room.

Sure, they can do it. But their regulars didn’t ask for it. And more importantly – they won’t pay for it.

The show will run for seven episodes on YouTube, where Barstool hopes their "loyal audience" will show up.

But loyalty has limits.

Ask any sports bar that tried to become a nightclub. Ask any rock station that switched to pop. Ask any brand that forgot what made them successful in the first place.

What happens when Tuesday night arrives

The real test comes when that first episode drops.

Will Barstool’s audience actually watch scripted content about Times Square performers? Or will this become another cautionary tale about media companies losing their soul while chasing mainstream acceptance?

Smokes told Deadline they originally had a movie script but decided a series would be easier. That’s backwards logic from a company that claims to disrupt everything.

Movies are one-and-done. Series require sustained audience interest week after week. If episode one flops, you’ve still got six more weeks of embarrassment.

Netflix won’t come calling. The audience won’t migrate from sports content to scripted comedy. And Barstool will learn what every media company before them learned the hard way.

Being good at one thing doesn’t make you good at everything.

The company that spent years mocking traditional media for being out of touch is about to discover why those old media rules existed in the first place.

Audiences don’t follow brands – they follow content that serves their interests. And Barstool’s audience didn’t sign up for Times Square Elmo documentaries.

¹ Sean Keeley, "Barstool Sports debuting first scripted series, ‘Les Mascots’," Awful Announcing, August 18, 2025.

² Ibid.

³ Ibid.

⁴ Ibid.