Like it or not, Netflix is well and truly pushing forward with its plan to destroy the cinema experience.
Its latest deal saw the streaming service pay out over $90 million to secure a deal with Will Smith, director David Ayer and screenwriter Max Landis for an upcoming sci-fi blockbuster.
Netflix is reported to have knocked out bids from Warner Bros. and MGM by offering $45 million to produce the film, a further $45 million to pay for the cast and $3 million to screenwriter Max Landis for his screenplay.
The current policy of day-and-date releases - that's films released on Netflix the same day they're in cinemas - has been broadly met with denouncements by the big cinema chains in the US. Not only that, the same cinema chains are refusing to carry Netflix's films in their venues, meaning that the films will most likely never be seen in a theatre setting.
This deal is the highest Netflix has paid out so far to acquire a film, having previously paid out $60 million to Brad Pitt and David Michod's upcoming black comedy War Machine. The exact details of what Bright is about isn't clear yet; however it's understood to be a police procedural with fantastical elements. The understanding is that if the film is well-received, Netflix will move to make Bright into a major franchise for the service.
The film will star the aforementioned Will Smith and Joel Edgerton and will begin filming in Los Angeles before the end of the year with a release date expected sometime in 2017.
Via Deadline
