The KPop Demon Hunters sequel is headed for a “broad theatrical release,” Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos said Wednesday as he laid out the streamer’s growing comfort with longer theatrical windows.
“When the ‘K-Pop Demon Hunters’ sequel comes, you can expect a very broad theatrical release,” Sarandos said at Bloomberg Screentime in Los Angeles.
It is part of a bigger shift for Netflix, which is beginning to lean more heavily into theaters before bringing films to its platform. Before the KPop Demon Hunters sequel arrives, the company will give La Bola Negra its first full 45-day theatrical window. Greta Gerwig’s Narnia is also set for a wide theatrical release next year, along with the animated Charlie vs. the Chocolate Factory.
Meanwhile, David Fincher’s The Further Mis-Adventures of Cliff Booth, written by Quentin Tarantino and starring Brad Pitt, will become the first Netflix movie to play in IMAX in November, just in time for Thanksgiving.
“What we’re doing is looking at this model and saying, ‘okay, how do we serve movie lovers who may want to see this movie in a theater,’ and ‘how do we not harm value to Netflix?’” Sarandos said. “How do we position the film best in the world?”
Sarandos said the point is to reach the most passionate audience where they are, while also building value for Netflix.
“The most passionate audience went to see it in the theater, so by the time it comes to Netflix, you’ve lost that passionate audience, and you got the people that go, ‘Oh, I meant to see that,’ or ‘I’ll get around to that,’” he said.
He added that Netflix’s data shows its biggest-watched films are usually Netflix originals, ahead of titles that come through the pay TV window, except for kids and family movies, which he said “get a lot of rewatching.”
Read more: Netflix and Sony Confirm Sequel to Animated Hit ‘KPop Demon Hunters’
In March, Netflix nd Sony Pictures Animation officially confirmed that a sequel is in development. Maggie Kang and Chris Appelhans will return to lead the project.
The announcement followed the original film’s rise as the most-watched movie in the history of the streaming service.
