The kings of mumblecore are coming to Netflix. At Sundance Film Festival, the streaming video on demand (SVOD) platform announced a four-film deal with brothers Mark and Jay Duplass.
According to Deadline, which first reported the deal, Netflix will finance the four films. The Duplass brothers, known for directorial credits like Cyrus and Jeff Who Lives At Home as well as acting credits like The League (Mark) and Transparent (Jay), will briefly debut the films in theaters before bringing them to Netflix a short time later. That model is the same one Amazon plans to use with its own line of original films.
For the Duplass brothers, the Netflix deal has a lot to do with economics. “My first movie made a grand total of $220,000 in theaters but about 5 million people have seen it on Netflix because they can click on it and they can try it out,” said Mark Duplass. “And so I really recommend to get your get goddamn movie on Netflix. It made my career.”
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Both Duplasses know a thing or two about online distribution. The aforementioned Transparent has been a groundbreaking hit for Amazon, while Mark used Vimeo to distribute Wedlock, a ten-episode web series he also starred in.
On Netflix’s end, the Duplass brothers join a growing list of filmmakers who are producing their work alongside the SVOD leader. Most significantly, Adam Sandler also signed a four-film deal with Netflix, and now, thanks to The Wrap, we know a few details about the first of those movies. It’s called Ridiculous 6, it stars Sandler as an orphan raised by Native Americans, and its all-star cast includes Nick Nolte, Steve Buscemi, Luke Wilson, and Terry Crews.
If that plot summary doesn’t float your boat, don’t worry. The Duplass brothers will surely bring Netflix viewers something a little more high-minded when they release the first of their four features.
