Netflix Announces Release Dates for its First Slate of Films

Netflix has announced release dates for its upcoming slate of films that includes Cary Fukunaga’s (Sin Nombre) Beasts of No Nation, the sequel Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon: The Green Legend (renamed from The Green Destiny), and Adam Sandler’s (Pixels) western-comedy The Ridiculous Six.

Beasts of No Nation will be released Friday, October 16 around the globe on Netflix, as well as in a limited number of theaters in the U.S. The film follows a child soldier, torn from his family to fight in an African country’s civil war. Idris Elba (Avengers: Age of Ultron) stars as the warlord who trains the child soldier.

Adam Sandler’s Ridiculous Six will be released on December 11. The western’s plot has been kept under wraps, though the production has been met with controversy after a group of Native American actors walked out on the set due to its portrayal of their culture, as well its depiction of women.

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon: The Green Legend will open in the first quarter of 2016 in IMAX and standard theaters in China, as well as in limited theaters in the U.S., and on the streaming service itself.

Lastly, Pee Wee’s Big Holiday will be released March 16 exclusively on Netflix. It will mark return to the character for Paul Reubens (Blow). The movie will also star Joe Manganiello (Magic Mike XXL), Alia Shawkat (Nasty Baby), and Laurence Fishburne (Man of Steel).

All four films are part of Netflix’s efforts to get into the distribution game by signing a multi-film deal with Sandler and biddimg on the distribution rights of other pictures. Major theater chains including AMC, Regal, Cinemark, and Carmike have all said they won’t carry any of these films because they are being released simultaneously on the streaming service and in theaters, thus supposedly diminishing the theatrical profits and hurting the overall theatrical business.