Streaming Is Where This Fall’s Movie Excitement Is Happening - Opinion
From Shane Conto
What are the big films coming to theaters for the remainder of this fall movie season? We have a new The Hunger Games film coming soon! Maybe almost 10 years later…interesting. We have Wonka dancing into cinemas with a big budget and Timothee Chalamet. Are you excited for it? We even have the final edition of the DCEU with Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom. This honestly feels a bit dead in the water. Disney might have one of their least anticipated films in a long time with Wish coming to theaters. But what films will be sparking excitement this fall? Look no further than some of the biggest names in streaming.
Which one might make the biggest splash? Apple TV+ is coming for the Oscars this year. Between two epic films, we are getting a pair of the most significant filmmakers in modern cinema bringing new films to the big screen (and later to Apple’s smaller ones). We have already got Martin Scorsese’s Killers of the Flower Moon. This film is a towering epic look at the horrors of white greed and the destruction of the Osage people and their wealth. Leonardo DiCaprio and Robert DeNiro collaborate with Scorsese for the first time together? That is exciting. We are also getting one of the longest gestating films in film history with a historical epic telling of Napoleon. Ridley Scott and Joaquin Phoenix reunite to bring this sprawling war epic to the silver screen (and your TV’s are home thanks to Apple). Those two films would have been enough to grab your attention. But there is another juggernaut of film sweeping in this fall.
Which service? Netflix. It honestly feels like every other release coming out this fall is coming from the original streaming service. There is family fun, inspiring biopics, and plenty more coming (and Netflix is hoping that a decent chunk of them will pull down some Academy Awards). Netflix is casting a wide net this year and delivering some of the films with the most buzz for the remainder of the year.
Let’s get family friendly first, shall we? The beloved Aardman film Chicken Run is getting a long gestating sequel coming to the streamer in December. I have a lot of love for the first film and will certainly be watching Dawn of the Nugget on opening night. Adam Sandler even has a new animated feature coming to Netflix this Thanksgiving week, Leo. But it is not just Netflix getting in the family entertainment field this fall. Apple has Mark Wahlberg’s The Family Plan looking to deliver some laughs. Disney+ obviously will have some fun holiday shenanigans with the likes of The Naughty Nine and Dashing Through the Snow. Amazon will have Eddie Murphy’s Candy Cane Lane. These offerings should help carry your family through the holiday season. Paramount+ is even stirring up the 90s nostalgia with a brand new Good Burger sequel (I cannot believe it actually exists).
What about the big budget fair? Apple has its duo epics but Netflix is offering up a different type of epic from a different type of auteur. Zack Snyder is bringing to life Rebel Moon, his own version of the Star Wars space opera offerings. Part one lands in late December hoping to make a huge splash for all the Snyder fans out there and science fiction fans alike. You know Netflix is hoping to have the next great sci-fi franchise on their hands and so does Snyder.
But it is the prestige films coming for those Oscars that Netflix is trying to saturate the fall season with, right? Right off the bat, we have a brand new David Fincher film (cinephiles rejoice!). Michael Fassbenber is The Killer and it will certainly get some excitement going for the returns of its director and star after a few years away. There are the big time biopics like Rustin (Colman Domingo trying to grab on to some Oscar buzz portraying this important historical figure). Bradley Cooper is even taking his talents to the streamer as he brings the life of Leonard Bernstein to the screen with Maestro. Annette Bening and Jodie Foster hope for some awards love with Netflix’s new sports biopic about famous swimmer Nyad. A powerhouse duo of Natalie Portman and Julianne Moore are going for a big collaboration with May December. A star-studded mystery flick like Leave the World Behind is another big win for Netflix. Throw in a documentary about Sylvester Stallone (Sly) and you have a huge slate for the number streaming service.
Is this all convincing enough? Trust me…there is even more. But these are some of the biggest releases for the rest of 2023 and the streaming services are boastly delivering them to audiences. This might be the biggest hold that streamers have had on a release schedule in a long time (if not ever). Sure, you will have your fair share of films to check out on the big screen. But it is the growing presence of streamers that will be the story this fall. Will Netflix make a huge splash at the Oscars? Will Apple go home happy? We will have to find out in a few more months. But in the meantime…turn on your streaming device, find the right app, and let the movies begin.
