Netflix and The Weinstein Company (TWC) have a new, multi-year licensing agreement that will make foreign-language films, documentaries and other movies exclusively available for Netflix members in the U.S. to watch instantly.
The highlight might be "The Artist," the silent film that has 10 Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture. It will make its pay-TV debut exclusively on Netflix rather than on traditional premium cable, the companies said.
Also making its pay-TV premiere on Netflix is "Undefeated," nominated for a 2012 Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature. "Undefeated" follows players on a Memphis, Tenn., inner-city high school football team as it attempts to win its first playoff game in the school's history.
TWC specialty films will appear exclusively on Netflix within one year of their theatrical release, including the French-language World War II drama "Sarah's Key"; the recent French box office record-breaker "The Intouchables"; the romantic drama "W.E."; and the Shakespearean adaptation "Coriolanus."
Terms of the deal, the first between TWC and the OTT giant for enjoying movies and TV shows, weren't disclosed.
"It is a fantastic coup for Netflix to acquire 'The Artist' and the package of additional titles," said TWC Co-Chairman Harvey Weinstein. "With this deal, a company that loves movies, Netflix, joins forces with a company that is built on that same love. It's exciting that we can offer consumers a supremely convenient way to see the kinds of movies that made us want to be in this business in the first place."
