Netflix moves into the movies
TV streaming giant will release more than 30 films in 2017
Will Smith’s next movie — part cop flick, part sci-fi — has all the makings of a Hollywood blockbuster except one. When Bright is released this year it will be playing on Netflix’s streaming service, not thousands of theatre screens.
Once an industry outsider, Netflix has emerged as one of television’s most powerful forces with shows including House of Cards and Stranger Things earning awards and attracting millions of viewers. Though the California company has released dozens of films in recent years, it hasn’t had the same impact in movies.
Now, the world’s largest paid video service is devoting more attention to motion pictures, looking to shake up that business just as it has TV. Bright, with a US$90 million ($129.9m) budget, is one of about 30 original films Netflix will release this year, from micro-budget pictures made by independent producers to lavish Hollywood productions. That’s a bigger slate than most major studios.
To succeed, Netflix needs to create pictures that generate the kind of buzz associated with a big-screen hit or an awards contender. That won’t be easy. Major theatres shun Netflix because the company insists that its films be available for streaming from day one. Hollywood studios, while eager to get movies into the home sooner, still vouch for the cinema experience, as do most filmmakers.
For Netflix, which will spend more than US$6 billion on TV shows and movies this year, the answer is money, talent and volume, as well as almost 100 million paying subscribers. The company’s future slate includes War Machine, a comedy featuring Brad Pitt and Oscar winner Tilda Swinton due out in May, and a new film from director Martin Scorsese.
Netflix said this week it had hired Scott Stuber, producer of Ted and The Break-up, to shepherd its film ambitions. A former vice-chairman of worldwide production at Universal Pictures, he will lead the development, production and acquisition of the company’s original movies, and work to persuade filmmakers to shed their attachment to the cineplex.
Oscar-night commercial
Netflix introduced audiences to the trailer for Bright in a commercial during last month’s Academy Awards. The same night, Amazon.com won three Oscars, including two for Manchester by the Sea, and host Jimmy Kimmel joked about Amazon chief executive officer Jeff Bezos, who was in the audience. Unlike Netflix, Amazon gives its movies a conventional run in theatres before they go online. The retail giant even makes presentations at the theatre industry’s annual gathering, CinemaCon, to win friends in the industry.
While Netflix has pursued and won Emmys — the highest award in TV — the Academy Awards are another matter. The company has mounted Oscar campaigns for documentaries without a win, and in 2015 failed to secure a nomination for Beasts of No Nation, an acclaimed drama about an African warlord directed by Cary Jo Fukunaga.
Netflix also bought several movies at the Sundance Film Festival in 2016, the same industry event where Amazon acquired Manchester, yet none earned major nominations.
Netflix says the scores of films it has made or backed so far, from Adam Sandler comedies to a Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon sequel, have been loved by fans, if not by critics or Oscar voters. The company can point to growing subscriber rolls as evidence its strategy is working, yet admits viewers spend far more time on TV shows than movies.
Smith, Bright director David Ayer and writer Max Landis all took a risk by allying themselves with Netflix. The company has never released a movie with “franchise potential’’ or a big-budget picture with an actor of Smith’s stature.
Successful track record
Yet Netflix is seen as the future by many in Hollywood. The online network added 19 million subscribers globally last year. With House of Cards, the company scored a major hit with its first original show. Viewers binged, stars were born and awards rolled in. Finding hits will fall to Stuber, who has a long track record of commercially successful comedies. Netflix is also betting he can be a magnet for talent. Amazon has hired executives who possess strong relationships with filmmakers.