Writers, Actors Strikes Cause Sony to Push Back Movie Schedule; When Will Films Hit Netflix Now?
Writers, Actors Strikes Cause Sony to Push Back Movie Schedule; When Will Films Hit Netflix Now?
The Writers Guild of America (WGA) and Screen Actors Guild - American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) strikes are continuing with no end in sight. Actors and writers are asking for a larger, but still reasonable slice of the residual pie and better protections against the intrusion of artificial intelligence into movies and TV, as streaming continues to change nearly every facet of home entertainment.
TV schedules haven’t been impacted much by the dual strikes yet, though some studios are preparing for that eventuality by lining up heretofore cable or streaming-exclusive titles for broadcast on network TV. Movie slates are a different story, as Sony has announced that it would be delaying a variety of titles bound for theaters because of the work stoppages.
From a streaming perspective, those delays will be felt by Netflix customers first. Netflix has had a Pay-1 deal in place with Sony since 2021, meaning that once the studio’s films finish their runs in theaters on and transactional/premium video-on-demand platforms, they go to Netflix to stream for 18 months. Sony typically uses a release schedule of around 120 days before sending its films to stream on Netflix, as it has done for recent films “A Man Called Otto” (113 days) and “The Son” (120 days exactly).
Which Films Have Been Delayed by Sony, and When Will They Stream on Netflix?
Some of Sony’s top upcoming titles have been given new release dates thanks to the two ongoing Hollywood strikes. Some titles — like “Bad Boys 4” (releasing June 14, 2024) and “Venom 3” (coming out July 12, 2024) — have been unaffected, and some have even been bumped up a bit. For example, Olivia Wilde’s Spider-Man adjacent film “Madame Web” has been moved up from Feb. 16 to Feb. 14, giving fans of the web-slinger extended universe a special Valentine’s treat.
But other titles are being pushed nearly a year, which means that their Netflix debuts have also been delayed for a considerable length of time. Assuming that these titles stick with the established baseline of 120 days between their initial theatrical releases and streaming debuts, check below for The Streamable’s best guesses on when Sony’s upcoming blockbusters will be available on Netflix.
‘Gran Turismo’
“Gran Turismo” will now use Aug. 11 and Aug. 18 as preview screening weekends to promote the wider release of the film, since its actors are now unavailable to give it the full-court press that most movies get when they premiere. That would bring it to Netflix right around the holidays this year.
| Original theatrical debut | New scheduled theatrical debut | Estimated streaming debut |
|---|---|---|
| Aug. 11, 2023 | Aug. 25, 2023 | Dec. 23, 2023 |
‘Kraven the Hunter’
This is the longest push on Sony’s calendar, as the movie was originally scheduled to hit theaters this October. Instead, it won’t make its way to cinemas until Aug. 30, 2024, a delay of nearly 11 months. The film has already released a trailer, and is part of Sony’s push to develop more Spider-Man characters into their own properties.
| Original theatrical debut | New scheduled theatrical debut | Estimated streaming debut |
|---|---|---|
| Oct. 6, 2023 | Aug. 30, 2024 | Dec. 28, 2024 |
‘Ghostbusters: Afterlife’ Sequel
This film has completed its principal photography but still needs actors (who are not currently available) to finish filming reshoots. That has led to a holiday date-swap, from a Dec. 20 opening this year to an Easter weekend release in 2024.
| Original theatrical debut | New scheduled theatrical debut | Estimated streaming debut |
|---|---|---|
| Dec. 20, 2023 | March 29, 2024 | July 27, 2024 |
‘Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse’
This one will likely hurt the worst for Sony fans, especially those who follow the studio because of its Spider-Man releases. “Across the Spider-Verse” has been the highest-grossing movie of the summer so far in the United States, but fans will be discouraged to learn that its Easter weekend 2024 release date has been replaced by a dreaded “TBD.”
| Original theatrical debut | New scheduled theatrical debut | Estimated streaming debut |
|---|---|---|
| Easter weekend 2024 | TBD | TBD |
‘Karate Kid’ Reboot
Netflix would have loved to get its hands on this one early, as it could have slotted right in alongside the next season of the streaming original series “Cobra Kai.” That will have to wait, as the film has been pushed from June 7, 2024 to a Dec. 13 release date next year.
| Original theatrical debut | New scheduled theatrical debut | Estimated streaming debut |
|---|---|---|
| June 7, 2024 | Dec. 13, 2024 | April 12, 2025 |
Netflix
Netflix is a leading subscription-based video streaming service that offers on-demand access to an extensive library of over 3,000 movies, 2,000+ TV shows, and a growing collection of acclaimed Netflix originals. Renowned for producing groundbreaking content, Netflix has become a cultural powerhouse with hit originals like “Stranger Things,” “Wednesday,” “Squid Game,” “The Crown,” “Tiger King,” “Bridgerton,” “The Witcher,” and “Black Mirror.”
