Netflix to report box office for first time with 'La Bola Negra'
Netflix's film La Bola Negra opens Friday on four screens in Los Angeles and New York, IndieWire reported. It is the first Netflix movie whose ticket sales the company will share in public, IndieWire and TheWrap reported. The film starts streaming on Netflix on December 2.
Netflix will publicly report box office results for the first time with "La Bola Negra," IndieWire and TheWrap reported.
The Spanish drama opens Friday on just four screens in Los Angeles and New York, IndieWire reported. One is The Paris, a theater run by Netflix. Two others are AMC theaters in Los Angeles, part of a chain that long refused to show Netflix films.
The film is from directors Javier Calvo and Javier Ambrossi, TheWrap reported. Netflix bought it after its well-received premiere at the Cannes Film Festival earlier this year. It will start streaming on Netflix on Dec. 2.
That gives it a 47-day run only in theaters, the longest Netflix has ever offered, both outlets reported.
For years, Netflix kept its box office numbers private, even for big releases such as "Roma," "The Irishman" and "Glass Onion," TheWrap reported. That choice angered theater owners and rival studios.
Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos said the company released 30 movies into theaters last year, each with its own plan, IndieWire reported. "We're looking at this model and saying, 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, and how do we position the film best in the world," he said.
Netflix hopes strong sales per screen will build word of mouth over the 47 days, IndieWire reported.
The company will also report grosses for bigger films, TheWrap reported. They include David Fincher's "The Further Mis-Adventures of Cliff Booth," starring Brad Pitt, which gets a two-week IMAX-only release at Thanksgiving. Greta Gerwig's "The Chronicles of Narnia: The Magician's Nephew" follows in February 2027.
AMC has already agreed to show "Cliff Booth" over Thanksgiving, IndieWire reported.
Whatever "La Bola Negra" earns, it will be a Netflix box office record, IndieWire noted, because the streamer has never before publicly shared what one of its films made in theaters.
What we know: La Bola Negra opens Friday on four screens, and Netflix will report its box office for the first time.
What we don't: How much the film will earn before it starts streaming on Dec. 2.
Where outlets agree IndieWire and TheWrap both report a 47-day theatrical window, the longest Netflix has offered.
Where they differ The outlets cited here report the same key facts so far.