Intro for November 7, 2024

Sarah
Posted by Sarah
on 11/7/2024 at 3:20 PM
Dear Gossips,

As we learned last month, Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi will star in a new adaptation of Wuthering Heights from Emerald Fennell. A new report from Variety states the film prompted a bidding war, with Netflix offering $150 million for it, but Robbie, who is producing the film as well as starring in it, led the filmmakers in declining Netflix’s gargantuan offer. Instead, they’ve opted to partner with Warner Bros. Discovery, who paid a reported $80 million for the pleasure and offered a “wide theatrical release and full marketing campaign”.

I have my issues with WBD, but FINALLY a filmmaker put their money where their mouth is and turned down Netflix in favor of a theatrical release. The pattern we usually see is that filmmakers preach the power of the communal experience, only to turn around and sell their films to Netflix, which does not grant films wide theatrical releases. (I’m never getting over Richard Linklater standing on stage at TIFF, sh-t talking Netflix, and then selling Hit Man to Netflix.)

And let’s be clear, Robbie and Fennell have the means to turn down $150 million. Robbie made a reported $50 million from Barbie alone, and Amazon bought Saltburn for $75 million, some of which would go to Robbie via her LuckyChap production shingle, but some to Emerald Fennell, too. These are rich people, they have the luxury of picking and choosing who they work with, which is my point—if you have the ability to choose where you work, use it. Don’t be yet another actor/filmmaker who takes a f-ck ton of Netflix money and then complains when Netflix doesn’t put your film in theaters. I asked a Netflix buyer once why this keeps happening, and she said it’s because everyone thinks they’ll be the special snowflake who convinces Netflix to send their movie to 2,000 theaters for ninety days, but that has yet to happen.

And let’s be clear, Robbie and Fennell have the means to turn down $150 million. Robbie made a reported $50 million from Barbie alone, and Amazon bought Saltburn for $75 million, some of which would go to Robbie via her LuckyChap production shingle, but some to Emerald Fennell, too. These are rich people, they have the luxury of picking and choosing who they work with, which is my point—if you have the ability to choose where you work, use it. Don’t be yet another actor/filmmaker who takes a f-ck ton of Netflix money and then complains when Netflix doesn’t put your film in theaters. I asked a Netflix buyer once why this keeps happening, and she said it’s because everyone thinks they’ll be the special snowflake who convinces Netflix to send their movie to 2,000 theaters for ninety days, but that has yet to happen.