Showtime and Amblin in deal
Agreement will bring titles from studios such as DreamWorks Pictures to network.
The pact will bring films from studios such as DreamWorks Pictures to the network.
Premium cable network Showtime will add select feature film titles from Steven Spielberg’s Amblin Partners, including “The Girl on the Train,” to its movie programming pipeline.
Under an exclusive licensing agreement, Showtime will receive the first run of films under the Amblin Partners umbrella — consisting of Amblin Entertainment, DreamWorks Pictures and Participant Media — theatrically released through December 2021.
Subscribers can watch the titles across all of Showtime’s platforms, including its sister television outlets, Movie Channel and Flix, as well as on Showtime On Demand and the streaming service Showtime Anytime.
Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Showtime’s co-head of acquisitions, Kent Sevener, said the movie deal adds “incredible value” to the company’s programming slate. Unlike its main rival, HBO, Showtime has few arrangements with major Hollywood studios for recently released films, and the Amblin arrangement provides several high-profile movies.
The Amblin deal will include as many as nine films annually produced under the company’s roster. As many as six of the films will be under the Amblin Entertainment and DreamWorks Pictures labels, and as many as three will come from Participant Media.
The agreement, announced Monday, extends a relationship between Showtime Networks and DreamWorks, which distributed films including “Lincoln,” “The Help” and “Bridge of Spies.”
Upcoming theatrical releases included under the existing DreamWorks deal and the new one with Amblin are: “The Light Between Oceans,” starring Alicia Vikander and Michael Fassbender, “The Girl on the Train,” starring Emily Blunt and “Ghost in the Shell,” starring Scarlett Johansson.
In addition to agreements with DreamWorks and parent Amblin Partners, Showtime has an arrangement with Open Road that will begin next year and continue through 2020.
Last year, Showtime, which is owned by CBS Corp., extended its pact with IFC Films through 2021 and entered an agreement with STX Entertainment through 2019. The premium channel also has a relationship with its sister division, CBS Films. lso has a deal with the Weinstein Co., whose movies continue to run on Showtime through next year.