Steven Spielberg said movies that basically go straight to streaming sites like Netflix should not qualify for “an Oscar.”
“Fewer and fewer filmmakers are going to struggle to raise money or to go to compete at Sundance and possibly get one of the specialty labels to release their films theatrically, publicly,” the 71-year-old filmmaker shared in an interview with ITV News. “More of them are going to let the SVOD [Subscription Video on Demand] businesses finance their films, maybe with the promise of a slight one week theatrical window to qualify them for awards as a movie.”
WATCH:
“But in fact, once you commit to a television format, you’re a TV movie,” he added. “If it’s a good show, you deserve an Emmy. But not an Oscar. I don’t believe that films that are just given token qualifications, in a couple of theaters for less than a week, should qualify for the Academy Award nomination.”
The director also pointed out that television is “greater today than it’s ever been” before.
“The television today is greater today than it’s ever been in the history of television,” Spielberg explained. “There’s better writing, better directing, better performances, better stories are being told. Television is really thriving with quality and heart, but it poses a clear present danger to filmgoers.”
“I’ll still make ‘The Post’ for audiences asking them, ‘Please to go out to the movies to see The Post,’ and not make it directly for Netflix,” he added.