Movie Theaters Want More Titles. Is Netflix Ready to Share Them?
Subscriber losses have forced Netflix to reassess many of its priorities. Will movie theaters be next?
Netflix Inc. was absent when Hollywood executives gathered in Las Vegas late last month to preview the year ahead in movies, at least officially. Its film chief Scott Stuber didn’t attend, nor did Netflix make a presentation to theater owners (as other studios do). But behind the scenes, Netflix executives met one-on-one with representatives of major theater chains.
Senior executives at Netflix have discussed trying releasing a few movies with a longer window (likely 45 days) in thousands of theaters later this year. Two potential candidates are the sequel to “Knives Out” and a new movie from Alejandro González Iñárritu. If that test works, the company could release as many as a dozen titles in theaters going forward.