Forget Ratings. ‘Orphan Black’ Had the #CloneClub.<br />Or as Sarah Barnett, the president of BBC America put it, “Every TV network, particularly at<br />a time of surfeit of content — peak TV — is absolutely driven in wanting to create fandoms.<br />“Their adamant vocal nature was the reason our show was anything — a success —<br />and seen the way it was,” said Tatiana Maslany, the star of “Orphan Black” who won an Emmy for best actress in a drama last year.<br />BBC America executives also saw that “Orphan Black” fans were particularly interested in drawing up art based on the show.<br />Though we’re not taking direction or changing story lines necessarily, it certainly gives you a direction<br />and it tells you what people like about characters and what they want to see from characters.”<br />In the last four years, as the number of scripted series on TV has ballooned, network executives have taken to saying<br />that they’re not trying to make everybody’s favorite show.<br />You have to really understand it and embrace it.”<br />To that end, BBC America decided to let fans create art and fan fiction based on the show, without any supervision from the network.<br />When “Orphan Black” made its debut four years ago, many TV networks were still<br />unsure how to engage with fans talking about their shows on social media.
