August 27, 2019
By Helen Coster
(Reuters) – Netflix Inc will release Martin Scorsese’s mob drama “The Irishman” in select independent theatres on Nov. 1 and offer it on the streaming platform just 26 days later, it said on Tuesday, forgoing a wide theatrical release for a film already generating Oscar buzz.
The plan follows an impasse in negotiations between Netflix and major theater chains like AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc and Cineplex Inc, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Major theater chains insist on a 90-day theatrical window before a film can appear elsewhere; Netflix wants to offer its films to subscribers sooner.
The debate around whether to reduce the traditional 90-day window is growing as streaming services such as Netflix, Amazon.com Inc and Walt Disney Co transform how people watch films.
Netflix’s limited theatrical release of “The Irishman” is similar to its 2018 release of “Roma,” which ran exclusively in theatres for 23 days and won three Academy Awards.
The streaming service picked up “The Irishman” from Viacom Inc’s Paramount Pictures, Scorsese’s original studio, in 2017. The film, starring Robert De Niro, Al Pacino and Joe Pesci, is considered to be a contender for the Academy Awards, and cost as much as $200 million (163 million pounds) to produce.
(This story corrects spelling of “Scorsese.”)
(Reporting by Helen Coster; Editing by Richard Chang)
