As it turns out, it was Blumhouse founder Jason Blum who came up with the idea to release Halloween Kills in theaters on the same day it begins streaming on Peacock.
“It was my idea to do it. [Peacock] didn’t approach me. I approached them,” Blum explained to Collider. “I, like everyone else, am a big believer in the theatrical experience. I think eventually there should be windows. I think Universal’s strategy of the three-week window is a great strategy, but I had a bad distribution experience with Freaky. That movie is a great movie, and it didn’t get seen because the distribution of it got all twisted up. My fault.”
Directed by Christopher Landon, Freaky is a slasher comedy starring Kathryn Newton as a high schooler who inadvertently switches bodies with a middle-aged serial killer (Vince Vaughn). It receive largely positive reviews but only grossed $16.2 million at the box office after opening theatrically in November 2020 — a time in which many theaters were closed and box office attendance had plummeted due to the ongoing coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Hoping to avoid a similar turnout for Halloween Kills, Blum pitched a day-and-date release to several creatives involved with the film, including co-writer/director David Gordon Green and star Jamie Lee Curtis.
“I didn’t want to go through that experience again,” said Blum. “I didn’t want to have a movie that I’m really proud of that I think is great and have there be an excuse why people didn’t see it. So I’m the one who pitched Universal. And then I pitched Jamie and David, and it was my idea. I stand behind it. I’m glad that we’re doing it.”
Keeping that in mind, Blum said his hope is that the third movie in Green’s Halloween trilogy, Halloween Ends, will get a theater exclusive release before it begins streaming. “I don’t want [a day-and-date-release] for the third movie. I want to go back to traditional windows, but COVID is incredibly unpredictable, and I didn’t want to risk it again. I felt like I did that with Freaky, and it left me with a bad taste in my mouth. So I don’t want to repeat that experience.”
Halloween Kills will premiere in theaters and become available to stream on Peacock starting Oct. 15.
Source: Collider
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