Good morning: In today's edition of The Industry, we look at:
Netflix’s Dreams, Peacock’s losses, and Anthony Hopkins’ homecoming.
Let’s go!
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Netflix 2025.
With 300M+ subscribers, Netflix could have coasted by continuing to program sequels (Squid Game Season 3, Knives Out 3) or fun but flat originals (Back in Action). They did all these things but also made a bold Sundance buy yesterday:
Train Dreams for ≈ $16 M.
It is the most methodically slow film in Netflix’s line-up in quite some time.
Here’s the synopsis:
Robert Grainer, an average man living in extraordinary times, worked as a day laborer in the American West at the beginning of the 20th century. Battered by the death of his family, he struggles to adjust to this new environment.
The film, expertly directed by Clint Bentley (writer: Sing Sing), is not driven by some great sense of manifest destiny but instead embraces the idea of having a little corner of the world to call your own. There’s a folksiness to Joel Edgerton, accompanied by Will Patton’s VO, that reminds me a bit of Wes Anderson. The slow, philosophical pace has shades of the Tree of Life.
This style is in stark contrast to Netflix’s previous Sundance buys:
It’s What’s Inside (2024)
A rapid-paced melt-your-face-off sci-fi horror
Purchase price: $17 M
Skywalkers: A Love Story (2024)
A doc that brings you to heart-pounding heights
Purchase price: $15 M
Fair Play (2023)
Burning jealousy fuels a cutthroat relationship
Purchase price: $20 M
This trio of films probably performs well on Netflix’s engagement dropoff curves, where they hook you from the first frames.
Train Dreams, like much great cinema, requires you to work at it, to lean in. And take the time to focus and let its magic absorb you.
I hope Train Dreams isn’t just a purchase made to fulfill some newfound audience segment but a signal that Netflix isn’t just chasing engagement anymore. It’s testing whether 300M subscribers will slow down long enough to savor something deeper.
For More:
Netflix’s full 2025 slate:
https://theindustry.co/p/netflixs-2025-slate
THE INDUSTRY TLDR
Netflix’s dropped their 2025 slate, including Knives Out 3 and Frankenstein.
Lena Dunham signs a first look TV deal with Netflix.
Peacock ends Q4 with no new subscribers.
A remake of the 1998 sci-fi thriller The Faculty is in the works at Miramax.
Focus Features is in talks to produce a feature take of Ryù Murakami's cult 1997 Japanese horror thriller novel, Audition.
Scott Belsky, Adobe’s chief strategist, is joining A24 as a partner.
After Black Mirror, Aaron Paul goes back to space in Ash, which premieres at SXSW.
Anthony Hopkins stars in Paramount’s Locked. His voice may sound familiar.
John Leguizamo joins the cast of Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey.
Memento International has taken on global sales rights for Shatara Michelle Ford’s sophomore feature, Dreams in Nightmares.
Die by Night, starring Scoot McNairy, is being launched by Protagonist Pictures ahead of EFM in Berlin.
HanWay Films has added 100+ films to its vast library, including The Buster Keaton Collection.
Samuel Goldwyn Films has acquired the North American rights to the action caper Killing Mary Sue.
Stavros Halkias has just sold his first movie, Let's Start a Cult, to Hulu.
THE INDUSTRY NEWS
Comcast’s Peacock flies to $1.3 bn. Here are the earnings stats for the NBCUniversal streamer:
Year over year gains:
$1.3 bn revenue (up 28%)
Flat:
36 M subs (flat in Q4, up 2 M for the year)
Losses:
-$372 M (down from $825 M loss from 2023)
-139K broadband subs (up from 34K last year)
Peacock’s parent company Comcast is doing decent, $31.92 bn revenue (up 2.1% from last year) plus 8.3% gain in Net revenue.
The Olympics gave Peacock a slight bump, but we’re four years away from the next games, and continued losses due to poor marketing, a lack of entertaining original programming, and an oversaturation of streamers spell bad news.
Perhaps their cable spinoff network (Spin-Co) will save the day, or else its off to another M&A/Bundle.
But there is one Peacock project that has us excited: Superfakes (EP: The Safdie Brothers) from A24. Here’s a quick synopsis:
A small-time Chinatown luxury-counterfeit dealer who enters a dangerous black market underworld in order to fund a life of suburban respectability for her family.
Hopefully, it has the oomph of Uncut Gems to drive some audience to Peacock.
A remake of the 1998 sci-fi thriller The Faculty is in the works at Miramax, sure to be otherworldly.
Veteran film director Robert Rodriguez, who directed the original horror film (trailer) written by Kevin Williamson (Scream) in a star-studded cast led by Josh Hartnett and Elijah Wood, will produce the remake. Drew Hancock (Companion) is on board to pen the screenplay for the updated version.
The Faculty features a news editor and film critic seeing the murder of a nurse. After she seemingly lives again, he decides to investigate the bizarre happenings.
Boulderlight, the production banner behind new-age horror favorite Barbarian (2022), is producing the remake.
Focus Features and Ashok Amritraj's Hyde Park Entertainment are in talks to produce a feature take of Ryù Murakami's cult 1997 Japanese horror thriller novel, Audition.
The newest take on Audition is being written and directed by Danish multi-hyphenate Christian Tafdrup, who is co-writing with his brother and frequent collaborator, Mads Tafdrup (Speak No Evil).
Audition tackles a widower who holds a fake casting call to find a new wife and he then becomes infatuated with a mysterious woman who harbors a dark and twisted past.
The novel was previously adapted into a 1999 (trailer) critically acclaimed Japanese film of the same name, directed by 2x Cannes Palme d’Or nominee Takashi Miike. The previous version has been hailed by many as one of the greatest horror films ever made, so Tafdrup has some pretty big shoes to fill.
Scott Belsky, Adobe’s chief strategist, is leaping into filmmaking, joining A24 as a partner to spearhead tech and innovation. After shaping creative tools at Adobe and scaling Behance, it’ll be interesting to see how he contributes to A24. Based in NYC, he’ll develop new projects while maintaining key advisory roles.
Mini tidbit:
Lionsgate and partners are developing another star-studded heist film, Den of Thieves 3, after Den of Thieves 2: Pantera’s recent box office success. Gerard Butler and O’Shea Jackson Jr. are expected to return.
THE ACTOR SPOTLIGHT
After the success of his disturbingly emotional Black Mirror episode: Beyond the Sea (scene), it seems Aaron Paul just couldn’t resist going back into space.
The first trailer has dropped for SXSW selection Ash, a survivalist sci-fi horror in the first feature-length directorial effort from Grammy winner and filmmaker Flying Lotus (V/H/S/99).
Official Synopsis:
A woman wakes up on a distant planet and finds the crew of her space station viciously killed. Her investigation into what happened sets in motion a terrifying chain of events.
Starring alongside Baby Driver (2017) actress Eliza González, Paul is best known as the charming and reluctant meth cook, Jesse Pinkman, on Breaking Bad (2008-2013) and its sequel film El Camino (2019, trailer), winning countless awards for his vulnerable and unforgettable breakout performance. With precious voiceover work in the black comedy series BoJack Horseman (2014-2020), Paul was recently announced to be joining the season 3 cast of Prime Video’s adult animated superhero show, Invincible, which drops its first episode on the streamer next week.
Opening on the fictional planet of Ash, in the midst of flashing neon lights and ominous spaceship sounds, the upcoming sci-fi movie’s trailer, in its first seconds, leaves you with several unanswered questions.
Ash is coming to theaters on March 21, 2025.
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Clarice.
Ever since Anthony Hopkins uttered that name, he has been associated with a bone-chilling killer.
So its no surprise that Paramount is taking full advantage in the new film, Locked.
The trailer sees Bill Skarsgård (looking more like Pete Davidson than Nosferatu) trying to steal cars. Until bingo, he pops the door open of a luxury black SUV. But when he enters the doors lock him in, and a voice comes over the intercom. It's Hopkins, and he wants to play a game.
It’s a nice spin on the genre, part Speed, part Locke, part Buried. You get the drift. And Hopkins is just so good at playing psychopathic it never gets old.
We look forward to seeing this March 21st.
Tidbit:
The kid stays in the picture. David Jonsson, who played the robot in Alien: Romulus, will star in Frank Ocean’s debut film. No title, no plot. But Jonsson was the most compelling actor to watch on screen in Romulus. His characterization of a socially and emotionally inept robot was played not stiffly but with a rich humanity. We look forward to seeing what him and Frank Ocean bring.
Once the king of summer slashers, David Arquette (Scream franchise) is making his return to the genre in Kill or be Killed from Chucky writer Nick Zigler and director David Straiton (Narcos). Reminiscent of a ‘90s teen murder flick, Kill or Be Killed follows a group of high schoolers fresh into their summer vacation who find themselves in the thick of their small-town killer’s terrifying games. Filming is expected to start this summer.
Joining Christopher Nolan’s star-studded cast for The Odyssey:
John Leguizamo
Elliot Page (Inception reunion)
Shooting kicks off soon, and we’ll see it in theaters in the Summer of 2026.
FESTIVALS
Just another win for Memento! Memento International has taken on global sales rights for Shatara Michelle Ford’s sophomore feature Dreams in Nightmares ahead of its international premiere in the Berlin Film Festival’s Panorama selection. The road movie follows a trio of queer Black friends on a life-changing journey searching for a fourth, while they truly discover themselves the film ends up becoming a compelling commentary on contemporary American society. The film originally premiered as the opening-night presentation at Philadelphia’s BlackStar Film Festival last August.
Ford’s 2019 debut feature, Test Pattern, was nominated for four Independent Spirit awards, including Best First Feature. With pretty impressive festival runs and a powerful start to her career, I’m excited to see more from Ford.
Die by Night is being launched by Protagonist Pictures ahead of EFM in Berlin. Here’s the lineup:
Dir/Wri: Rod Blackhurst (Blood for Dust)
Cast: Isabelle Fuhrman, Ben Hardy, Scoot McNairy
Synopsis:
In a post-apocalyptic world of deadly Nights, Lucia and Barry must reach The Wall for safety. They face The Horde, creatures hunting in darkness, and The Clans, tribes trading humans.
Expect something in the vein of A Quiet Place meets The Road, with creature designs from Vincent Proce (It Chapter 2).
INDIE FILMMAKER SPOTLIGHT / INTERNATIONAL NEWS
All hail HanWay films. The legendary international sales rep behind everything from Paris, Texas (1984) to Shame (2011) to La Cocina (my favorite film of 2024), had two big wins this week:
Acquired 100+ films, including
The Buster Keaton Collection
The Merchant Ivory Collection
HanWay president stated:
“Our library business sits at the very heart of HanWay…[it'] is devoted to the idea that great cinema, beautifully presented and carefully handled, will always have an audience.”
2nd win:
Brought on Andrei Kamarowsky (France’s About Premium Content) as director of international sales
Kamarowsky stated:
“Having long admired the company’s commitment to championing visionary filmmakers, I look forward to collaborating with such a talented group…”
Next up for them: EFM in Berlin.
Australia-based Matchbox Films has acquired the rights to the Brazilian LGBTQ+ romantic thriller Streets of Glória from native Brazilian screenwriter and director Felipe Sholl (wri. The Other End).
The fast-paced and emotionally charged film had its world premiere at the Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival in Estonia last year. After its festival premieres, Streets of Glória was purchased by Dark Star Pictures (The Lost Boys), who specialize in producing genuine Queer stories for the big screen.
Watch the beautifully provocative trailer here.
Samuel Goldwyn Films has acquired the North American rights to the action caper Killing Mary Sue, written and directed by Big Brother producer James Sunshine. The film follows a corrupt senator who puts a hit on his burnout step-daughter who just so happens to be a stone-cold killer, leading the cast are:
Sierra McCormick (American Horror Stories)
Dermot Mulroney (My Best Friend's Wedding)
Sean Patrick Flanery (The Boondock Saints)
Martin Kove (Cobra Kai)
Samuel Goldwyn is planning a theatrical release this incoming summer.
Check out this first look image of McCormick in action.
Savvy Baby starts a cult: Stavros Halkias has just sold his first movie, Let's Start a Cult, to Hulu.
He is a very funny guy. In a sea of YouTube reel crowd-work comedians, he sticks out by generally being a pretty chill guy with an infectious laugh. He's starting his road to infamy as a co-host on the comedy podcast Cumtown (hey, man, that's what it was called).
Stavros recently started doing his own thing, including a series of tours where he had no material and just vibed off and, in some ways, mercilessly made fun of the idiots who yelled things during comedy shows. Sure, he definitely let some bozos have it, but a lot of his conversations were calming, uplifting, and, in a weird way, sweet. That sweetness has probably been what has endeared him to his growing audience.
You definitely get that sweetness even in the murky dark subject matter of his new film, he plays a hapless surviving cult member trying to piece together his life and try to figure out why he wasnt invited to the mass suicide. Trailer here.
Let's Start a Cult will be on Hulu.
For more:
Here's 30 minutes of him in his element (NSFW, probably).
ON THIS DAY
1999. Family Guy first airs on Fox.
That’s all for the week. See you Monday.
Written by Gabriel Miller, Spencer Carter, and Madelyn Menapace.
Editor: Gabriel Miller.
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