The 18 Best Streaming Movies That Didn’t Make It to Theaters
Let’s talk for a moment about classic movies designed for live video streaming. American Psycho 2: All American Girls (with Mila Kunis and Williams Shatner) Puppet man versus demonic toys; Bratz: Starrin and Stilin; Hellraiser 5-10; Amityville 5-19 (!), 41-year-old virgin who knocked down Sarah Marshall and felt super bad about it; Starship Troopers 2: Hero of the Federation – They weren’t necessarily bad.
There are plenty of decent animation stuff out there (Barbie movies, the long-running DC superhero series, some OK Disney sequels, Scooby-Doo, and more) and this form has been a testing ground for low-budget horror creators of all kinds. Also, of course, there is a lot of explicit porn – anything that is niche by definition but can sell if sold to the right audience. And if it was released in theaters, audiences might not have flocked to watch the adventures of previously unseen relatives in American Pie Presents: Band Camp , but it did very well on DVD, thanks, and no, I don’t have a copy. somewhere nearby, what are you talking about?
The rise in streaming has had an interesting impact on the market: one could assume that the growing demand for content would have led to a surplus of cheap bullshit – and to some extent this has been the case, but also created huge competition for viewers. The pandemic has naturally pushed business away from cinemas, but it has only accelerated the trend that good films never happen near your local theater. Direct streaming is the latest evolution of the distribution model that started with VHS cassettes in its day and then grew dramatically with the advent of DVD. Even if cinemas survive the next few years, it will never again be the case that a film has to hit cinema to be considered worthy.
While they may have seen the screens of some film festivals or seen limited releases in small venues (just enough to qualify for big awards), all of the following films skipped wide release entirely in favor of live streaming to major streamers. The difference in what we see now is huge.