A24 and Warner Bros Discovery have inked a deal for the former’s new films to stream exclusively on their streaming service Max.
Max, previously known as HBO Max, is becoming the streaming home for A24 films in the US. Warner Bros Discovery, which owns HBO and the streaming service, has struck a pretty valuable deal with A24 that allows it to exclusively stream the studio’s films on Max.
Films such as Sofia Coppola’s Priscilla, Sean Durkin’s wrestling drama The Iron Claw and the latest Nicolas Cage affair Dream Scenario will be made available for Max subscribers after their theatrical runs. A24 has quickly become one of Hollywood’s most effective and respected studios with its focus on leftfield projects and creative freedom (though that may change somewhat as it expands its focus to action films and recognisable IP). Even Ridley Scott praised the studio on the Napoleon press tour.
Warner Bros Discovery and A24 also extended their licensing deal, which means that past Oscar-winners such as The Whale and Everything Everywhere All At Once will pop up on the service. According to a press release, over one hundred A24 films will be available for subscribers.
“Continuing our relationship with A24 to bring award-winning movies alongside recent fan-favorites to subscribers adds incredible value to the HBO and Max value proposition,” said Royce Battleman, EVP of content acquisitions for Warner Bros. Discovery. “The diverse range of stories that come from the A24 pipeline make this partnership so impactful for our audience.”
A24 has become somewhat of a safe haven for filmmakers. The studio recently allowed Ari Aster to make his three-hour epic Beau Is Afraid for $30 million with very little chance of the film making its budget back. The film was met with polarising reviews and it only grossed just over $11 million at the global box office. However, Beau Is Afraid seems to have been a branding exercise more than anything, announcing A24 as a studio that was willing to take risks and do something unexpected rather than churn out an endless amount of films that are essentially carbon copies of each other.
Max isn’t available in the UK at the moment, so unfortunately this news story doesn’t affect us that much. HBO has a deal with Sky, so most of their TV shows air on Sky Atlantic but A24 are still being licensed to individual streaming services, it seems.
