Two of America's three biggest cinema chains won't show Netflix's new Brad Pitt film, which streams about a month after release. Fair stand, or a loss for film fans?
The Further Mis-Adventures of Cliff Booth, directed by David Fincher from a Quentin Tarantino script, opens on 25 November for a two-week Imax-only run, then reaches Netflix around Christmas. Regal and Cinemark turned it down; AMC is showing it. Cinemark's chief executive said the release model isn't constructive for cinemas.
What happened
Netflix is giving The Further Mis-Adventures of Cliff Booth, David Fincher's Brad Pitt sequel to Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood, a two-week Imax-only cinema run from 25 November. It then streams on Netflix around Christmas, about four weeks after opening. In the US, Regal and Cinemark, two of the three largest chains, declined to show it, while AMC is booking it. Cinemark's chief executive, Sean Gamble, said the release model was not "constructive for the broader theatrical ecosystem". The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping, which opens two weeks earlier, keeps those Imax screens instead.
Why people disagree
Backers of the chains say cinemas rely on films staying exclusive long enough to earn back their costs, and short windows teach audiences to wait for streaming; they also had a big Hunger Games release to protect. Others say film fans lose the chance to see a major film on the big screen. Imax's chief executive, Rich Gelfond, argued large chains could have played both films, pointing to KPop Demon Hunters doing well in cinemas despite being on Netflix.
What's still unclear
Whether the stand changes Netflix's plans for later films, such as its Narnia film, now moved to February with a longer 45-day window; how Cliff Booth performs on AMC's screens; and whether other chains follow either side's lead.
Sources
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