New Steven Spielberg movies will soon be streaming in.
The director’s company, Amblin Partners, signed a deal with Netflix to create multiple feature films per year, the streaming service announced on Monday.
“At Amblin, storytelling will forever be at the center of everything we do, and from the minute Ted and I started discussing a partnership, it was abundantly clear that we had an amazing opportunity to tell new stories together and reach audiences in new ways,” Spielberg said in a press release. “This new avenue for our films, alongside the stories we continue to tell with our longtime family at Universal and our other partners, will be incredibly fulfilling for me personally since we get to embark on it together with Ted, and I can’t wait to get started with him, Scott, and the entire Netflix team.”
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Ted Sarandos, Netflix co-CEO and chief content officer, called Spielberg a “creative visionary and leader.”
“Like so many others around the world, my growing up was shaped by his memorable characters and stories that have been enduring, inspiring and awakening,” he continued. “We cannot wait to get to work with the Amblin team and we are honored and thrilled to be part of this chapter of Steven’s cinematic history.”
Spielberg’s views on Netflix have shifted dramatically in recent years. As recently as 2019, the acclaimed director mounted a campaign against the streaming service, arguing it shouldn’t participate in the same awards ceremonies as more traditional theatrical productions.
“Steven feels strongly about the difference between the streaming and theatrical situation,” a spokesperson for Spielberg’s film and production company told IndieWire. “He’ll be happy if the others will join [his campaign] when that comes up [at the Academy Board of Governors meeting]. He will see what happens.”
The streaming service became increasingly popular in 2020 and 2021, when the COVID-19 pandemic forced people to stay at home. In January, Netflix surpassed 200 million subscribers, with 37 million of those subscribers joining in 2020, according to the California-based streaming service’s earnings report.
“We’re enormously grateful that in these uniquely challenging times we’ve been able to provide our members around the world with a source of escape, connection and joy while continuing to build our business,” an internal shareholder letter shared with the Washington Examiner said. “With 8.5m paid net additions in Q4, we crossed the 200m paid memberships mark. For the full year, we added a record 37m paid memberships, achieved $25 billion in annual revenue (+24% year over year) and grew operating profit 76% to $4.6 billion.”
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Netflix “achieved $25 billion in annual revenue” during its fourth quarter to be followed by anticipated paid net adds of 6 million in the first quarter of 2021, which factored in “the impact from the initial COVID-19 lockdowns,” according to the letter.
“Our strategy is simple: if we can continue to improve Netflix every day to better delight our members, we can be their first choice for streaming entertainment,” it said. “This past year is a testament to this approach.”
