Rian Johnson is determined to have Netflix “wake up” to the current rise in in-person movie-going. Johnson, whose third “Knives Out” film “Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery” will be released this fall, told Business Insider that amid the theatrical successes of “Sinners” and “A Minecraft Movie,” Netflix should have no qualms releasing “Knives Out” on the big screen.
“I think theatrical is not going anywhere,” Johnson said. “We’ve seen, if you put a movie people want to see in the theaters, they are going to show up for it, and that experience of being in a full house and having that experience is so important. It’s something that I love and I want more of in the world.”
He added of “Wake Up Dead Man,” “I want this in as many theaters for as long as possible. We’re going to push for everything we can get in terms of theatrical, because I want as many people as possible to see it in that form.”
Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos recently said during the Time100 Summit that theatrical releases are an “outdated concept,” especially since “most of the country” does not have access to theaters, either due to geography or pricing.
Johnson responded to Sarandos’ statements in the Business Insider piece, saying, “Obviously I don’t [agree]. I love movies. I love going to see movies. But also, I have a feeling talking to Ted, it would be a different thing than one quote taken and kind of tossed at me in this context. So, I don’t want to phrase this as I’m having a proxy discussion with Ted right here.”
IndieWire has reached out to Netflix for comment about the release plans for “Wake Up Dead Man.”
The first “Knives Out” film was released in 2019 by Lionsgate and became a box office hit. Netflix later made a deal with writer/director Johnson to produce two sequels for the platform. The first follow-up, 2022’s “Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery,” made history as the widest release ever for Netflix. The film was also the first Netflix movie to screen in AMC and Regal locations after the streamer partnered with AMC Theaters, Regal Cinemas, and Cinemark for “Glass Onion” to open in 600 theaters.
“Knives Out” franchise staple Daniel Craig said in 2024 that he also hoped Netflix would have “Wake Up Dead Man” in theaters for more than one week like “Glass Onion.” “Hopefully, Netflix will push it out a bit, and people will get to see it,” he said. “The people I speak to — the fans, I suppose — all they want to do is take their families and go see it at the cinemas. That’s all they want to do. Hopefully we can give them that experience.”
“Wake Up Dead Man” also stars Josh O’Connor, Glenn Close, Josh Brolin, Mila Kunis, Jeremy Renner, Kerry Washington, Andrew Scott, Cailee Spaeny, Daryl McCormack, and Thomas Haden Church.
