David Ayer on Why Supernatural Thriller 'Bright' is Headed to Netflix, and Not the Big Screen
David Ayer's next project, post-Suicide Squad, is a supernatural cop thriller titled Bright. It stars Will Smith and Joel Edgerton, and is based on a spec script by Max Landis. So far, it sounds like a winner.
But instead of headed for a major studio, Ayer went to Netflix, which dropped $90 million for the project. This has plenty of potential to continue this new direction for film, fitting right in with the conversation regarding Screening Room.
Ayer spoke with Deadline regarding just why he went with Netflix, and the answer comes right down to two basic words: Creative freedom.
"I can't even speak to any theatrical release plans for this, I don't even know if that's going to happen and it wasn't my priority. I was after the creative freedom, the ability to make really hard R rated movies with vision and voice, and see them play in the on-demand world.
"You do that as a theatrical release, and you'd better hit a bulls eye, some cultural zeitgeist. Otherwise it's a gamble for studios; it's easier for them to justify $200M budgets for tent poles than $40M to $90M for the movies I like to make."
There's room for both kinds of films. If big-screen films aren't willing to challenge the rules, then there's at least somewhere to go for filmmakers who want to shake things up.
Source: Collider
