Has Hollywood Softened Toward Netflix?
As "La Bola Negra" opens in theaters for a 47-day run, the Spanish Oscar entry is not only the frontrunner for Best International Feature, but also the best shot the streamer has so far for a Best Picture win.
By Anne Thompson
- Anne Thompson is a contributing editor at IndieWire.
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Imagine "Roma," the 2018 black-and-white Mexican autofiction by Alfonso Cuarón, with nine Oscar nominations, eventually winning three, including Best International Feature and two for its director and cinematographer. Almost a decade ago, Netflix was on the cusp of winning its first Best Picture Oscar.
But Academy voters chose "Green Book," Peter Farrelly’s feel-good film starring Mahershala Ali and Viggo Mortensen as a Black musician and his driver touring the South, instead. That awards season, the antipathy toward Netflix was palpable. Academy governor Steven Spielberg publicly supported "Green Book" and argued that Netflix films should compete for Emmys, not Oscars.
At the Governors Ball after the Oscars, there was a sense of relief. Year after year, Netflix’s formidable awards team has accumulated multiple nominations, only to lose out on Best Picture.