🚶♂️ David Fincher to Part Ways with Netflix
David Fincher does not plan to renew his overall deal with Netflix when it expires next year. The director behind iconic films such as Fight Club, The Social Network, and Gone Girl has collaborated with the streaming giant for years, playing a key role in launching flagships like House of Cards and Mindhunter.
In 2020, Fincher signed an exclusive pact with the platform, under which he directed Mank, The Killer, and the upcoming spinoff The Further Adventures of Cliff Booth.
Fincher currently has no plans to lock himself into an exclusive deal with another studio. This decision gives him complete creative freedom while leaving the door open for potential one-off collaborations with Netflix down the line.
Fincher’s departure fits into a broader industry trend of the streamer parting ways with key creative talent. Director Noah Baumbach recently made the move to Warner Bros., Stranger Things producer Shawn Levy inked a deal with Disney’s 20th Century, and showrunners the Duffer Brothers moved their production overall to Paramount.
Particular interest surrounds Fincher’s final exclusive project for Netflix—a spinoff of Quentin Tarantino’s Once Upon a Time in Hollywood centered on Brad Pitt’s character. In a departure from its usual distribution strategy, Netflix will release Cliff Booth in IMAX theaters on November 25, a full month before its streaming debut on December 23. The platform is actively experimenting with traditional theatrical windows—and even plans to report box office figures for select titles—to attract top-tier directors who insist on big-screen releases.
Incidentally, the project was originally developed by Sony Pictures, which released Tarantino’s original film. Tom Rothman, Chairman & CEO of Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group, expressed regret over losing the project to the streamer:
“We were going to make it when Quentin was going to direct it. But when Quentin decided not to, the only guy he would give his script to was David. And David was exclusive to Netflix, so we stood down.”
With Fincher’s exclusive deal coming to an end, legacy Hollywood studios now have a genuine opportunity to lure the master director back to traditional theatrical filmmaking.
Source: Variety
