Ashton Kutcher’s been keeping busy these days, between Two and a Half Men and filming the Steve Jobs biopic, but he’s quietly added a new role to his hefty resume.
Kutcher’s production company, Katalyst, is behind Thrash Lab, which claims to be the “destination for visual storytellers who think aloud and dream bigger.” Katalyst is one of the partners that YouTube announced last year in a plan to invest $100 million in new original content.
But don’t expect Kutcher to appear in front of the camera anytime soon.
Katalyst President Anthony Batt told AdAge that Kutcher was more like a creative director or executive producer, although he may be on-camera for a behind-the-scenes show in the future.
Thrash Lab has been online for about a month, and like other Hollywood channels without previous ties to the YouTube community, it has struggled to gain traction. It has just 3,552 subscribers, despite having three video series already in progress.
Subculture Club is a documentary show that profiles a different subculture and the divide between them and the rest of the U.S. The program’s already covered “Teenage Magicians” and the “Real Rydaz.” It updates every other Wednesday.
Guy Branum hosts The Factuary, a weekly show that tackles a different top every episode, from Game of Thrones and M.I.A. to the “Dubstep Evolution.” The Factuary updates on Thursdays at “happy hour.” Here’s the show’s latest video on Father’s Day.
Rituals follows bands and artists and gives a detailed look at how they spend the moment before their “big moment.” Rituals currently features Foster the People and their warm-up routines before a show. It doesn’t have a set day for updates.
Those are promising shows, but if Thrash Lab is really going to take root on YouTube, it might need more of Kutcher’s star power.
Photo via YouTube
