Netflix, Paramount Talking International Deal For Alex Garland-Directed ‘Annihilation’ With Natalie Portman

EXCLUSIVE: Netflix and Paramount/Skydance are negotiating a deal on the Alex Garland-directed Annihilation that will give the streaming service international rights to the sci-fi thriller, and an opportunity to release the film on its overseas streaming service 17 days after the film premieres in the the U.S. on February 23. Paramount will do the traditional theatrical release in the U.S., Canada and China. Putting a major film on Netflix internationally three weekends after its release is as groundbreaking as a similar deal that Netflix made with New Line on the next installment of Shaft. (...)

Annihilation will be the next film to test that model. Aside from covering a majority of the film’s budget, the feeling was that a specialized movie like this realizes the bulk of its theatrical gross domestically. A close cousin would be Garland’s Ex Machina, which grossed $25.4 million domestically and $11.4 million internationally, this with a Rotten Tomatoes score of 94%. Annihilation will be seen by a much larger audience overseas as a fresh Netflix film, was the rational behind this. I expect it to become more common as Netflix is hungry to feed its global audience and films like this prove a challenge to market in overseas theaters.