Netflix’s ‘Roma’ signals new business strategy
Alfonso Cuaron’s critically acclaimed film “Roma” — an intimate, black-and-white, Spanish-language feature about a middle-class Mexican family and their live-in nanny — seems an unlikely candidate for the role of Hollywood disrupter.
Nonetheless, the $15-million awards contender, which Netflix Inc. released in a handful of theaters just before Thanksgiving, has become a flash point in the contentious debate over the future of film distribution.
“Roma” was released in theaters three weeks before it becomes available to Netflix subscribers on Dec. 14, an unprecedented move for a company that has traditionally eschewed the idea of releasing movies in theaters before they are available to subscribers on its streaming platform.
Facing rising competition from Disney and other media giants entering the streaming business, Netflix is increasingly eager to lure filmmakers who want their movies to be shown on a big screen and get awards recognition.
Awards pundits widely predict that “Roma” will earn the Los Gatos, Calif.-based firm its first best picture Oscar nomination — a triumph for a company that craves the same credibility in the movie business that it has achieved in television, having become a fixture in the top Emmy races with such shows as “House of Cards” and “The Crown.”
But Netflix’s new film distribution strategy is facing heavy opposition. Many cinema chains are refusing to screen “Roma,” saying it sets a bad precedent.
It’s a battle that has pitted the exhibitors that built Hollywood against the powerful streaming giant that has radically disrupted its conventions.
The dispute revolves around a longstanding practice of releasing movies in ordered phases called windows. Traditionally, studios have waited 90 days after a movie debuts in theaters before making it available for home viewing. Exhibitors argue that shortening the exclusive window from three months to three weeks devalues the theatrical experience and discourages people from leaving their homes to watch movies.
“They’re still outsiders, and they’re still not part of our industry at this point,” said Phil Zacheretti, chief executive of Knoxville, Tenn.-based cinema chain Phoenix Theatres Entertainment. “Every exhibitor should fight it. We should work with them, but work with them on terms acceptable to the exhibition community.”
Netflix has been trying to walk a tightrope between its own competing interests, stirring internal tensions over how much to conform to — or upend — traditional cinema industry practices.
Chief Content Officer Ted Sarandos has long railed against the idea of windows as antiquated. He has insisted on releasing movies to streaming subscribers and in theaters simultaneously, arguing that doing so gives consumers more choice.
“We are not pro-theater, we’re not anti-theater — we’re pro-consumer,” he said at a May investor conference in New York.
Yet, in the last year, Netflix has clearly softened its approach to cine- mas. Netflix film head Scott Stuber, a former Universal Pictures executive, has pointedly assured top filmmakers their movies will get a robust theatrical push, people close to the company say. This summer, Netflix hired prominent awards consultant Lisa Taback to lead its campaigns, and has erected billboards along the Sunset Strip to remind voters of its titles.
Two film industry executives said Netflix is looking to build a small theatrical distribution team in-house, which would signal more of a willingness to pursue big releases. Netflix has previously considered buying a theater chain like Landmark Theatres, but backed away from the idea because of the price. Netflix declined to comment. Nancy Garcia, Marina de Tavira and Yalitza Aparicio discuss working with Alfonso Cuaron on Netflix’s “Roma,” which won the top prize at the 2018 Venice Film Festival and is generating major awards season buzz.
The company has struggled to balance its aversion to windows with its need to attract talent — such as Cuaron, the Coen brothers and Martin Scorsese — as well as Oscar glory. Previous Oscar hopefuls “Beasts of No Nation” and “Mudbound” were released in some theaters simultaneously with their streaming debuts, but failed to secure best picture nominations.
“No filmmaker says, ’Yeah, I want to make a movie for an iPad. They want people to see it on the big screen, and rightly so,” said Karie Bible, a box office analyst with Exhibitor Relations. “In order for it to be taken seriously by the motion picture academy, it has to have a theatrical release.”
Rival Amazon Studios earned a best picture nod for its 2016 drama “Manchester by the Sea.” Amazon’s strategy is to work with theaters to give its movies a prolonged theatrical rollout before they become available on Amazon’s Prime Video streaming service.
To qualify for Oscars, movies must be shown in theaters before, or on the same day as, other distribution methods.
Beyond prestige, Oscar victories could attract more filmmakers to Netflix and encourage subscribers to watch its films.