Looks like Neon just sent Osgood Perkins’ “Keeper” out to die. They refused to screen the film widely for press, and kept reviews under embargo until the day previews began. Now we know why.
The horror film is on track for a $2M opening weekend after earning around $1M on Thursday and Friday. Critics and audiences seem to have rejected the film as well — that D+ CinemaScore isn’t good, and neither is the 51% critics score on Rotten Tomatoes.
Still, the film was made for under $10 million, so not much money is lost. It was a quick, low-budget horror project shot during the WGA strikes, starring non-union actors and written by a non-union Canadian writer — so all is still well in Perkins-land, for now.
Perkins’ “Longlegs” ($128M) and “The Monkey” ($68M) made a ton of money for Neon, enough that Perkins is already in the midst of shooting his next film, “The Young People,” set for release next year.
An eyebrow-raising IndieWire write-up titled “Oz Perkins Needs to Break Up with Neon” has been making the rounds. The author argues that Perkins’s partnership with the indie distributor has become a creative trap rather than a success. The piece also questions Perkins’s rapid-fire production schedule — making multiple small-budget horror films back to back. Although this approach may be financially sustainable, it’s causing his work to feel repetitive, less polished, and artistically hollow, according to the article.
The author suggests that Perkins might benefit from slowing down, reassessing his creative vision, or even parting ways with Neon to regain his earlier spark. What are the odds of thar happening? Nil to none.
Should “Keeper” be taken as a warning sign?The movie has been met with mediocre or even outright negative reviews. It could be evidence that Perkins’ current formula is wearing thin, and that he risks sacrificing his reputation for the sake of volume and quick payoffs.
However, Perkins’ home is at Neon, where they’ve developed his name as a brand, and as long as he continues to make quick, cheapies at such a rapid pace, there’s no reason for either party to separate.
Netflix and Skydance Animation have also called it quits. The two sides announced Monday that they're ending the animated film deal struck back in 2023, framing it as a mutual decision.