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It's best days are behind it. Dump the stock. Their answer to everything is just throw more money at it. The theaters want a delay before it hits Netflix.
The war between Netflix and major theater chains has now spilled over into one of the streaming giant's most high profile projects of all time: Martin Scorsese's The Irishman. Part of the reason Scorsese agreed to make his latest crime epic on Netflix is because the company has always planned on releasing the film in theaters, as well as on the streaming service. However, theaters still aren't happy with how Netflix is aiming to do that.
According to a new report from The New York Times, negotiations are still ongoing between Netflix and national theater chains AMC and Cineplex. Talks between Netflix and the theaters stalled out back in July and have picked back up in the last couple of weeks, but there's no information as to how those conversations are going just yet. The theaters want Netflix to wait at least a couple of months before the film is available to stream after arriving in theaters. Of course, Netflix isn't keen on that idea.
"Talks are underway about our showing The Irishman and other Netflix films, but the outcome of those conversations is not yet clear," AMC executive Adam Aron told The Times.
At this time, the other two biggest chains in the country, Regal and Cinemark, are not in negotiations with Netflix regarding The Irishman or other films.
With Scorsese at the helm, and an all-star cast of Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, and Jo Pesci in front of the camera, Netflix wants to make a big awards push for The Irishman this year, just as it did for Roma last year. The only problem is that theatrical release window, which has become a massive point of contention between the streaming studio and the various awards committees.
https://comicbook.com/movies/2019/08/22/netflix-the-irishman-theater-release-struggles/
One way or another, The Irishman is going to play in theaters. Netflix has too much invested in the project, and they're planning on giving it a major Oscar push when awards season heats up. AMC and Cineplex are not going to determine the film's fate at the Academy Awards. The only thing at stake here is how many theaters The Irishman will play in and where. If Netflix can't come to terms with the big chains, they can opt to give The Irishman a limited run in smaller theaters located in big markets. Scorsese, a longtime advocate for cinema and the theatergoing experience, is understandably pushing for a classic nationwide release, but he may have to compromise should the talks continue to go nowhere.
This issue isn't going to go away any time soon. Netflix is looking to make a splash at the 2020 Oscars not just with The Irishman, but also Noah Baumbach's Marriage Story and possibly Steven Soderbergh's The Laundromat. The streaming giant also has new films from acclaimed directors like Spike Lee and David Fincher in the pipeline, illustrating a concerted effort by Netflix to continuously be in the Oscar discussion. It'll be interesting to see how this all plays out, but there's no denying things have drastically changed with the prominence of streaming.
disclaimer: I own shares of AMC and also Dolby stock. Dolby provides a great theater experience I am told.
UPDATE:
Netflix Forgoes Wide Release for Martin Scorsese's 'The Irishman'
The streamer and theater owners have been unable to reach a compromise that would allow the star-studded drama to play on thousands of screens across the country.
Not even a Martin Scorsese mob pic could bridge the divide between Netflix and cinema chains.
The streamer will forgo a wide theatrical release for Scorsese's The Irishman in order to make the film available to its subscribers as quickly as possible, a longstanding policy that doesn't fly with exhibitors. There had been rampant speculation that the Oscar-hungry Netflix might further soften its stance in regard to honoring theatrical windows, but in the end, it couldn't reach a compromise with chains including AMC and Cineplex.
The Irishman will open Nov. 1 in select indie cinemas willing to carry the drama. More than three weeks later — or 26 days to be exact — it will debut Nov. 27 on Netflix, much as Alfonso Cuarón's Oscar-nominated Roma did last year. This rules out the sort of big-screen blitz Scorsese and other seasoned directors are used to, unless something changes at the 11th hour. (The Irishman makes its world premiere Sept. 27 at the New York Film Festival, where it's the opening night film.)
Last year, Netflix acknowledged the value of the theatrical experience when announcing that Romaand other Oscar hopefuls would play exclusively in cinemas for two to three weeks before being made available to its subscribers. But that wasn't enough to appease all Oscar voters — or theater chains, which insist on a 90-day window between the time a title opens and is released on home entertainment (for digital sell-through, it can be 74 to 76 days).
https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/n...ide-release-martin-scorseses-irishman-1234382
The war between Netflix and major theater chains has now spilled over into one of the streaming giant's most high profile projects of all time: Martin Scorsese's The Irishman. Part of the reason Scorsese agreed to make his latest crime epic on Netflix is because the company has always planned on releasing the film in theaters, as well as on the streaming service. However, theaters still aren't happy with how Netflix is aiming to do that.
According to a new report from The New York Times, negotiations are still ongoing between Netflix and national theater chains AMC and Cineplex. Talks between Netflix and the theaters stalled out back in July and have picked back up in the last couple of weeks, but there's no information as to how those conversations are going just yet. The theaters want Netflix to wait at least a couple of months before the film is available to stream after arriving in theaters. Of course, Netflix isn't keen on that idea.
"Talks are underway about our showing The Irishman and other Netflix films, but the outcome of those conversations is not yet clear," AMC executive Adam Aron told The Times.
At this time, the other two biggest chains in the country, Regal and Cinemark, are not in negotiations with Netflix regarding The Irishman or other films.
With Scorsese at the helm, and an all-star cast of Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, and Jo Pesci in front of the camera, Netflix wants to make a big awards push for The Irishman this year, just as it did for Roma last year. The only problem is that theatrical release window, which has become a massive point of contention between the streaming studio and the various awards committees.
https://comicbook.com/movies/2019/08/22/netflix-the-irishman-theater-release-struggles/
One way or another, The Irishman is going to play in theaters. Netflix has too much invested in the project, and they're planning on giving it a major Oscar push when awards season heats up. AMC and Cineplex are not going to determine the film's fate at the Academy Awards. The only thing at stake here is how many theaters The Irishman will play in and where. If Netflix can't come to terms with the big chains, they can opt to give The Irishman a limited run in smaller theaters located in big markets. Scorsese, a longtime advocate for cinema and the theatergoing experience, is understandably pushing for a classic nationwide release, but he may have to compromise should the talks continue to go nowhere.
This issue isn't going to go away any time soon. Netflix is looking to make a splash at the 2020 Oscars not just with The Irishman, but also Noah Baumbach's Marriage Story and possibly Steven Soderbergh's The Laundromat. The streaming giant also has new films from acclaimed directors like Spike Lee and David Fincher in the pipeline, illustrating a concerted effort by Netflix to continuously be in the Oscar discussion. It'll be interesting to see how this all plays out, but there's no denying things have drastically changed with the prominence of streaming.
disclaimer: I own shares of AMC and also Dolby stock. Dolby provides a great theater experience I am told.
UPDATE:
Netflix Forgoes Wide Release for Martin Scorsese's 'The Irishman'
The streamer and theater owners have been unable to reach a compromise that would allow the star-studded drama to play on thousands of screens across the country.
Not even a Martin Scorsese mob pic could bridge the divide between Netflix and cinema chains.
The streamer will forgo a wide theatrical release for Scorsese's The Irishman in order to make the film available to its subscribers as quickly as possible, a longstanding policy that doesn't fly with exhibitors. There had been rampant speculation that the Oscar-hungry Netflix might further soften its stance in regard to honoring theatrical windows, but in the end, it couldn't reach a compromise with chains including AMC and Cineplex.
The Irishman will open Nov. 1 in select indie cinemas willing to carry the drama. More than three weeks later — or 26 days to be exact — it will debut Nov. 27 on Netflix, much as Alfonso Cuarón's Oscar-nominated Roma did last year. This rules out the sort of big-screen blitz Scorsese and other seasoned directors are used to, unless something changes at the 11th hour. (The Irishman makes its world premiere Sept. 27 at the New York Film Festival, where it's the opening night film.)
Last year, Netflix acknowledged the value of the theatrical experience when announcing that Romaand other Oscar hopefuls would play exclusively in cinemas for two to three weeks before being made available to its subscribers. But that wasn't enough to appease all Oscar voters — or theater chains, which insist on a 90-day window between the time a title opens and is released on home entertainment (for digital sell-through, it can be 74 to 76 days).
https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/n...ide-release-martin-scorseses-irishman-1234382
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