Alleged wife-killer Cliff Booth has gone and got himself kicked out of Regal and Cinemark IMAX theaters, like it was a movie set run by Janet. Per Puck, the two theater chains and other smaller moviehouses have declined to run Netflix’s upcoming movie The Mis-Adventures Of Cliff Booth during its limited two-week IMAX engagement. However, it will be available in AMC theaters.
The newsletter reports the issue stems from Booth‘s November 25th release date, originally set for Greta Gerwig’s Narnia movie, The Magician’s Nephew. Narnia‘s release was already contentious within theater groups, which have been historically hostile to Netflix because the streamer has been trying to put them out of business. To wit, the Narnia release was part of “a secret deal” between Netflix and AMC, made behind the other theaters’ backs. AMC has the most IMAX screens in the world, with 500, but Regal does operate more than 300 worldwide, and Netflix wants Booth on them. However, when Netflix moved the David Fincher-directed Once Upon A Time… In Hollywood sequel to Narnia‘s Thanksgiving release date, Cinemark, Regal, and other smaller theaters opted against running it. After all, Cliff Booth will be on Netflix by Christmas, so viewers might wait to watch it at home, and those screens could be used for the second and third weekends of the latest Hunger Games movie, Sunrise On The Reaping.
Fincher’s third and final movie for the streamer, written by Quentin Tarantino, sees Brad Pitt reprising his Oscar-winning role. But the rollout of the $200 million movie hasn’t been the rollicking good time Netflix hoped. In late September, Fincher reportedly decided not to renew his exclusive contract with the streamer, ending a decade-long relationship that’s been exclusive for six years. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Fincher already planned on making his current Netflix contract his last when he signed three years ago. However, the timing of his exit, along with the recent mass layoffs and firing of key film executives, leaves the door wide open for speculation. At the very least, his exit two months before the movie’s release doesn’t generate the kind of headlines Netflix wants associated with its Thanksgiving tentpole. Still, it can take some solace in the news that fewer subscribers are opening their Netflix apps than ever.
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