Phil Lord and Chris Miller’sThe Mitchells vs. The Machinesis skipping theaters in favor of a Netflix release. 2020 has presented some unique challenges for the entertainment industry when it comes to distributing new material. Nearly a year ago, movie theaters, along with other businesses, shut their doors. New movies were given a choice of delaying, or going the streaming route to get the content out. Now, we’re pretty much in the same boat, as over 60% of movie theaters are still shut down in North America.
Netflixannounced earlier today thatThe Mitchells vs. The Machineswill debut on their platform. Danny McBride, Abbi Jacobson, Maya Rudolph, and more star in director Mike Rianda’s comedy, which is produced by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller. Lord and Miller’s follow up toSpider-Man: Into the Spider-Verseis about a family’s struggle to relate as technology rises around the world. Netflix did not announce when the upcoming animated movie will be released, though speculation points towards a February premiere to make it in time for the 2021 Academy Awards season.
Phil Lordsays, “Finally the world can blast this bundle of joy into its eyeballs! Thank you Netflix for loving this thing as much as we do!” He also announced that the movie was able to go back to its original title:The Mitchells vs. The Machines. “We’re bringing back the original title cause it’s 2021 and we can have nice things now.” While the project was in development, it was known asConnected. You can read a statement from Lord andChris Millerbelow.
“We are overwhelmed by the enthusiasm Netflix has expressed for this movie with this acquisition and grateful to everyone at Sony for making a great picture with us and finding a big way to bring it to audiences. We’re really proud of the film we all made together, plus we understand our subscription fees are waived in perpetuity as part of the deal? We’re not lawyers but it does sound right to us.”
The Mitchells vs. The Machinesdirector Mike Rianda is also excited that the movie is finally going to be seen. “This is a very personal movie about myvery weird family. I’m so grateful to all the incredible artists that poured their love and passion into this project to make it a reality, and to everyone at Sony who believed in us and were on board to make a different kind of animated movie.” said Rianda. The director went on to praise Netflix for being “totally in sync with us creatively” and for being “just as excited about the movie” as they are.
Mike Rianda went on to note thatThe Mitchells vs. The Machineshas an “original story with a creative visual style that we’re extremely proud of.” Rianda also commented on the lengthy journey of getting the movie out and in front of people, stating, “I can prove to my friends that this five-year journey wasn’t an elaborate delusion on my part.” Hopefully a release date for the movie will be announced soon. You can check outThe Mitchells vs. The Machinesannouncement above, thanks tothe official Netflix Film Twitteraccount.
