Rian Johnson is probably less than thrilled—but he did sign on to these ‘Knives Out’ movies fully aware of Netflix’s well-known aversion to the theatrical model.
The streamer has just announced that it will give Johnson’s “Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery” a two-week theatrical run before it hits streaming. The film opens in select theaters on November 26 and lands on Netflix December 12.
This is the third entry in Johnson’s whodunit saga, with Daniel Craig returning as Benoit Blanc alongside an ensemble that includes Josh O’Connor, Glenn Close, Josh Brolin, Mila Kunis, Jeremy Renner, Kerry Washington, Andrew Scott, Cailee Spaeny, Daryl McCormack, and Thomas Haden Church.
Johnson has been extremely vocal about wanting a wider theatrical release than Netflix has previously allowed. The last ‘Knives Out’ instalment, ‘Glass Onion’ played just one week in 600 theaters back in 2022.
“We’re going to push for everything we can get in terms of theatrical, because I want as many people as possible to see it in that form,” Johnson told Business Insider.
Last year, Daniel Craig and Johnson told Deadline they were “not happy” with Netflix’s approach to releasing their films. The tension was on full display back at the TIFF 2022 premiere of ‘Glass Onion,’ where Puck’s Matt Belloni reported a heated exchange in which Craig reportedly shouted at Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos: “Your [business] model is fucked!”
Unfortunately, Craig and Johnson have not gotten the wider theatrical window they hoped for. The ‘Wake Up Dead Man’ decision comes just a few weeks after Netflix granted Guillermo del Toro’s “Frankenstein” a three-week run—roughly the same length Greta Gerwig’s ‘Narnia’ is expected to receive next year.
So, Netflix isn’t budging, but at least ‘Wake Up Dead ‘Man will have double the theatrical window of its predecessor. Technically, that’s a “win” for Johnson.
