Netflix has set a raft of theatrical releases for its awards season heavyweights with the likes of Alejandro G. Inarritu’s Venice world premiere Bardo getting a Mexican theatrical release some seven weeks prior to dropping on the platform.
Bardo will open in the director’s home country on October 27 and arrives on the platform on December 16. It opens in select theatres on November 4.
Rian Johnson’s Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery starring Daniel Craig will open in theatres on an unspecified date and drops on the service on December 23. This is the most obvious “tentpole” and all eyes will be on the theatrical release plan.
Turning to other Lido premieres, Noah Baumbach’s Venice opener White Noise gets a long lead, opening in theatres on November 25 with the Netflix date set for December 30. Andrew Dominik’s Blonde with Ana de Armas will open in theatres on September 16, nearly two weeks ahead of its September 28 debut on the platform.
There has been speculation as to whether the streamer will adopt theatrical releasing in a more robust way under its ever-evolving strategy, particularly in light of its recent subscriber losses. Sources have indicated this to be the case and such a move could be received enthusiastically by exhibition at a time when the industry is on tenterhooks about cinema-going outside tentpole season.
While putting films in theatres around the world is nothing new for Netflix, the long stretch between theatrical release and service debut for such a substantial portion of upcoming films does seem new. Alfonso Cuaron’s 2018 Oscar winner Roma got three weeks in theatres before it hit the platform, and last year Oscar winner Jane Campion’s The Power Of The Dog got two weeks in theatres.
Edward Berger’s TIFF world premiere and German Oscar submission All Quiet On The Western Front will open in theatres in Germany one month prior to its debut on the service, arriving on September 29 with the Netflix debut set for October 28. The film will open in theatres in select markets outside Germany in October.
Tobias Lindholm’s TIFF premiere The Good Nurse starring Jessica Chastain and Eddie Redmayne opens in select theatres on October 19, one week before it hits the platform, and Henry Selick’s (Coraline) animation Wendell & Wild arrives in select theatres on October 1 a week before it drops on the service.
Sally El Hosaini’s TIFF opening night selection The Swimmers debuts on the platform on November 23 and arrives in theatres on an unspecified date.
Besides Bardo and White Noise, December also brings Guillermo Del Toro’s Pinocchio, which debuts on the service on December 9 with an unspecified theatrical release date. Sebastian Lelio’s The Wonder with Florence Pugh and Tom Burke opens in theatres in November prior to a December drop on Netflix.
Netflix has set theatrical releases for other films on its fall slate, too. For example Tyler Perry’s TIFF premiere A Jazzman’s Blues opens in theatres on September 16, one week before it lands on the platform.
No comments yet