The movie industry is changing, and few people know that better than Richard Linklater. The director just released his latest film, Hit Man on Netflix, which quickly found its way to number one on the streamer and has seemingly been an instant crowd pleaser. While fans have loved the fun, quirky, and strangely profound action comedy, many have wondered why the movie went to the streaming platform and only received a limited release in select theaters before its at-home debut. Linklater recently explained why he partnered with the company for his film's distribution, and he didn't mince words.
It was during an interview with IndieWire that Richard Linklater was asked about Hit Man’s Netflix success. Amid the chat, the auteur also explained why he decided to join forces with a streaming service for his latest film rather than fight for theatrical distribution. The Dazed and Confused filmmaker explained that while he would’ve loved for his latest flick to have been acquired by a major studio and played wide in theaters, the changing movie industry prevented that from being in the cards. Linklater didn’t blame audiences, but rather the studios for not taking chances on adult entertainment at the theaters:
How about Universal or Warner Brothers? I look at the studios, if anyone wants to cast blame. The indie film [world], to me, seems to have the same goals that it’s always had: to show films and try to find an audience somewhere. It’s the studio world, to me, that’s changed the most. They’ve abdicated a kind of filmmaking. They’re not interested in even making this type of film [anymore]. They’re not interested in adult entertainment.
Looking at the movie landscape, it’s hard not to see his perspective. The films that tend to perform well at the box office these days are those that are linked to massive IPs with built in audiences. This year feels like a glowing example of the director's point. Despite the summer movie season being in full swing, Dune: Part Two remains atop the box office for global cumes in 2024. Original projects like The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare and The Fall Guy had underwhelming showings, despite featuring major stars at the center and generally appealing to a wide audience. Something like Hit Man, which is explicitly adult, is a major risk for studios and a space that feels dominated by streaming services -- especially when trying to reach the widest audience possible.
Richard Linklater's action romance flick is indeed achieving success on one of the best streaming services on the market. However, he still feels the disappointment regarding a lack of a proper theatrical release and what it means for original adult movies at the box office. Hit Man had all the tools at its disposal: a big-name director with many successes under his belt, a sexy crowd-pleasing story and script and a budding movie star in Glen Powell, who is coming off box office gems like Anyone But You and Top Gun: Maverick. The film also got wonderful reactions out of Sundance and seemed like a sure-fire success. Even with all of that working in its favor, big studios still weren’t interested in taking on the project. Linklater continued:
It was a very mild bidding situation; [the studios] could have had us, but this isn’t something [just] at a script level they rejected, they rejected it as a finished film with audiences applauding and a critical response. They still looked at it and said, ‘Mmmm, this isn’t what we do.’
There's a chance the Glen Powell-led flick would have broken through had the film played solely in theaters across the globe. Last year, the adult drama Oppenheimer achieved box office success and, this year, Civil War and Challengers this year have made waves in their own way at the theaters. However, the aforementioned Christopher Nolan film also benefited from a major coincidental Internet campaign and is now starting to feel like the exception rather than the rule. But, even if Hit Man achieved Civil War/Challengers numbers, this arguably still doesn’t come close to the number of eyes on the film after a major Netflix release. Of course, that reinforces Richard Linklater’s point about the dominance of streaming in the adult movie space.
Even though some may be disappointed to not see Hit Man on the big screen, the movie is still a fantastic watch and worth checking out with a Netflix subscription. For more information on movies heading to both theaters and streaming this year, make sure to consult the 2024 movie release schedule.
