Michael Douglas is detailing simply how a lot streaming has affected the function of producers in Hollywood. The actor/producer, who at Cannes was celebrating the fiftieth anniversary of “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest,” which he produced and gained an Oscar for, instructed Deadline that Silicon Valley-based firms resembling Amazon and Apple have “inhaled Hollywood.” And that’s even regardless of filmmaking not being their core conglomerate goal.
“Right now, streaming has taken over. It has inhaled Hollywood. It’s very profitable,” Douglas mentioned. “Silicon Valley made us seem like paupers. For Amazon and Apple, films are a aspect enterprise. On the similar time, lots of the nice screenwriters went to work in TV and streaming.”
Douglas, who gained the Finest Image Oscar alongside Saul Zaentz for “Cuckoo’s Nest,” recalled how the enduring Miloš Forman movie itself fared in theaters. The drama made historical past as one of many three movies to ever to win all 5 main Academy Awards of Finest Image, Actor, Actress, Director, and Screenplay.
“‘Cuckoo’s Nest’ was a wholly unbiased manufacturing,” he mentioned. “The studios all handed on it. Possibly they didn’t just like the deal we provided, as a result of we had already financed it. However they had been additionally skeptical in regards to the materials. […] For those who examine the 5 Finest Image nominees from our 12 months [also nominated at the 1976 ceremony were ‘Barry Lyndon,’ ‘Dog Day Afternoon,’ ‘Jaws,’ and ‘Nashville’], with a few of the current years… Theatrically it has turn into very tough.”
Douglas notably pointed to the Apple Unique movie “Wolfs” starring George Clooney and Brad Pitt. Director Jon Watts revealed that Apple was first going to offer the characteristic a large theatrical launch and switched it “last-minute” to a streaming launch with a one-week theatrical window. “I wasn’t even instructed about it till lower than per week earlier than they introduced it to the world,” Watts instructed Collider in 2024, including that he canceled the deliberate sequel since he “now not trusted [Apple] as a inventive companion.”
Now, Douglas is citing how the “Wolfs” rollout is unfortunately an indicator of the priorities for tech firms turned studios. “Have a look at that Apple film ‘Wolfs.’ It was meant to be theatrical, and it became a one-week launch,” Douglas mentioned. “I’m engaged on a small film proper now that I’m going to provide and I’m conscious how tough it’s going to be to get it into theaters for any size of time. The difficulty is whether or not the movie show expertise can dangle in there. It’s a troublesome time for theater house owners.”
As for whether or not or not Douglas will act once more, he no less than dominated out returning to Marvel (“I don’t suppose so” he mentioned of presumably reprising his “Ant-Man” function.)
“I’m having fun with my hiatus and having fun with my life. It was overwhelming working the manufacturing firm and appearing on the similar time,” Douglas mentioned. “If one thing good comes up that I actually like [I will act in it]. However I don’t really feel a burning want. I’m nonetheless producing. I nonetheless love bringing individuals collectively.”