Apple Inc. is looking to make a splash in Hollywood by bringing feature-length films to theaters before releasing them on its streaming TV service, according to people familiar with the plans.
The company has made overtures to cinema chains and consulted with an entertainment executive as it pursues a traditional theatrical-release plan that would keep its movies in theaters for weeks before becoming available on Apple TV+, these people said.
By reaching out to theater-industry representatives now and releasing films early, Apple is hoping to attract big-name directors and producers and avoid some of the tension created by another Hollywood newcomer, Netflix Inc., people familiar with Apple’s strategy said.
Netflix typically asks theater owners to release movies it owns or produces at the same time they are available on the streaming service. That approach limits the company’s ability to play its movies in major cinemas, which generally insist that films don’t appear online for about three months after their theatrical debuts. In recent months, talks between theater companies and Netflix about showing awards contenders such as the coming Martin Scorsese drama “The Irishman” in their cinemas have fallen apart after the two sides failed to reach a consensus on the exclusivity.
Apple’s strategy is more akin to that of Amazon.com Inc. , which started releasing films in 2015. Amazon has given movies such as “Manchester by the Sea” a three-month theatrical window while others get a two-week run.
Apple’s effort is being led by its co-heads of video programming, Zack Van Amburg and Jamie Erlicht, who report to the iPhone maker’s services chief Eddy Cue. They have tapped Greg Foster, the former head of entertainment at IMAX Corp. , as a consultant to help with the plan.
Among Apple’s first major theatrical releases is Sofia Coppola’s “On the Rocks,” which stars Rashida Jones as a young woman reconnecting with her eccentric father, to be played by Bill Murray. Apple is eyeing a mid-2020 release, perhaps following a premiere at a high-profile event such as the Cannes Film Festival, people familiar with the situation said.
“On the Rocks” is being produced through Apple’s partnership with A24, an independent film production company known for such art-house releases as the best-picture winner “Moonlight” and “Hereditary.” Apple and A24 signed a multiyear partnership last year.
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A24, while well-regarded in Hollywood and among critics, isn’t known for setting box-office records: Its top-grossing release, “Lady Bird,” made $49 million in the U.S. and Canada.
Apple has also talked with movie theater representatives about a documentary called “The Elephant Queen,” which it plans to release this year. The documentary—about an elephant leading her herd across Africa—is slated to debut Nov. 1 on TV+ and also air in theaters so that it is eligible for awards consideration, according to people familiar with the plans.
Rather than see the theatrical strategy as a moneymaker, Apple is more interested in the prestige and brand-building that can come with a glitzy theatrical release, according to people briefed on its plans, a strategy similar to that of Amazon Studios. Like Apple, Amazon has focused on character-driven movies largely abandoned by major studios, producing big-budget features in the vein of “The Avengers” or “The Fast and the Furious.”
Apple has pitched itself as a place where artists can share their stories with the world, putting pressure on it to define a theatrical-release plan for producers and directors, said agents and Hollywood advisers. They said a strategy would help the company woo content creators who still want to see their work on the big screen and be taken more seriously as a player in film.
J.J. Abrams, the director of “Star Wars: The Force Awakens,” recently spurned Apple’s overtures to bring his film, television and digital projects to the company. Instead, Mr. Abrams signed with WarnerMedia in a deal worth less than Apple proposed, partly because Apple didn’t have a movie distribution model, according to people familiar with the negotiations.
Movies could deepen the appeal of Apple TV+. Apple’s subscription-streaming service, which makes its debut Nov. 1, will initially offer just a handful of original shows, making it a tough sell against the deeper programming libraries of such streaming rivals as Netflix, Amazon and Walt Disney Co.
Apple has tried to counter its shallower offering by undercutting rivals on price. TV+ will cost $4.99 a month, less than the $6.99 that Disney plans to charge for Disney+ and a fraction of the price of Netflix’s fee of $12.99. The iPhone maker can afford to discount the service because of the profits it earns on hardware and its ability to distribute across the more than 1.4 billion active devices it has world-wide.
Apple’s push into Hollywood has created challenges for established players. On the day it announced its TV+ pricing, Disney Chief Executive Robert Iger resigned as a director on Apple’s board to avoid any potential conflicts as the companies increasingly compete.
Mr. Foster brings to Apple nearly two decades of experience with some of Hollywood’s most popular filmmakers, such as James Cameron and Mr. Abrams, who have shot their movies with IMAX technology, as well as major exhibitors such as AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc.
Mr. Foster’s tenure at IMAX coincided with the company’s expansion beyond science-museum documentaries to include auditoriums in every major theater chain, dedicated to showing Hollywood’s biggest releases for a premium price on large-format screens. Since IMAX only shows one movie at a time, studios now schedule their releases at times they know they can secure IMAX auditoriums.
—Joe Flint contributed to this article.
Write to Tripp Mickle at Tripp.Mickle@wsj.com and Erich Schwartzel at erich.schwartzel@wsj.com
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https://www.wsj.com/articles/apple-plans-to-bring-feature-length-films-to-theaters-11569579632
2019-09-27 10:20:00Z
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