Always in search of savings, Netflix will radically change the method of production of its films. No more big-budget author projects like The Irishman by Martin Scorsese, make way for blockbusters guaranteed to make a number of figures like Red Notice.
Losing momentum, Netflix continues its transformation. We already knew that its division dedicated to the series was going to become a real jungle where the slightest misstep can be expensive (ask the creator of Funny, Fanny Herrero), but film production is unlikely to be spared from the new restrictions. According The Hollywood Reporterthe Los Gatos firm will revise its policy in this area.
Focus on big budgets and big names…
Of the 200 people fired a few weeks ago, the divisions related to the production of feature films have been particularly affected. This is particularly true for the one devoted to independent films, which focused on budgets of less than 30 million dollars, and the one which worked on live-action family films. We also know that the animation has experienced major restrictions and cancellations in recent weeks.
The focus now assumed by Netflix is popular big-budget films, if possible supported by big names. The next two projects of the platform are of this order. On the one hand, The Gray Man will stage Ryan Gosling, Chris Evans and Ana de Armas in front of the Russo brothers’ camera, haloed by the success of the last two avengers. On the other, the myriad of suites whodunit Knives Out by Rian Johnson with Daniel Craig. Respective budgets of the two projects: 200 and 469 million dollars.
…to the detriment of artistic films
Conversely, the era of Netflix coming to the rescue of ambitious auteur films seems to be over. We think of The Irishman by Martin Scorsese, which had cost no less than 175 million dollars, but also to mank by David Fincher Rome by Alfonso Cuaron or Okja by Bong Joon-ho (which Netflix distributed). Projects not necessarily expensive, but which served more to establish the artistic legitimacy of the service than to explode the viewing counters. Problem: for a film with a relevant and original message like Don’t Look Uphow much Red Notice, Spiderhead, 6 Underground and other lambda action films that are content to multiply headliners and tasteless scenarios?
“Small films are not going away”says a source from HollywoodReporter, but they will now be more specialized and focused on a niche audience. For the rest, Netflix’s new golden rule will now be bigger, better, fewer, bigger, supposedly better films, but above all in less quantity — which is perhaps not a bad thing. It will now be a question of producing a big film at 100 million dollars rather than two at 50 million. Curiously, the objective of one new film per week would be maintained. But what quality ?