AMC Theaters has agreed to show select Netflix documentaries as part of the Academy’s “Oscars® Spotlight: Documentaries” screening initiative for shortlisted titles. “American Factory”, “The Edge of Democracy”, “The Great Hack” and “Knock Down the House” have begun screening at ten different AMC locations and beginning December 25 and have showtimes scheduled all the way through January 6.
This isn’t the first time a Netflix documentary has been shown at an AMC: “Shirkers” was shown part of last year’s Oscars Spotlight at three of the chain’s locations.
The behavior remains unusual, as AMC has refused to show previous Netflix titles which were not in-line with the traditional 3-month distribution window between a theatrical and home video release followed by other studios. As an example, last year’s “Roma” was not shown at AMC, Regal or Cinemark locations despite being shortlisted for awards.
Other locations to show the shortlisted docs include select Landmark, Laemmle and Alamo multiplexes, as well as some independent moviehouses. The complete list can be found below.
Atlanta – Landmark’s Midtown Art Cinema
Austin – Alamo Drafthouse Cinema Lakeline
Boston – AMC Boston Common 19
Chicago – AMC River East 21
Denver – Alamo Drafthouse Cinema Westminster
Los Angeles – Alamo Drafthouse Cinema Downtown Los Angeles
AMC Burbank 16
AMC Sunset 5
Laemmle Playhouse 7
Laemmle Monica Film Center
Miami – AMC Aventura 24
Minneapolis – Landmark’s Edina Cinema
New York – AMC Empire 25
IFC Center
Philadelphia – AMC Neshaminy 24
Landmark’s Ritz at the Bourse
Phoenix – Harkins Valley Art
Raleigh – Alamo Drafthouse Cinema Raleigh
Salt Lake City – Salt Lake City Film Society’s Broadway Centre Cinemas
San Francisco – AMC Bay Street 16 – Emeryville
Landmark’s Opera Plaza Cinema
Santa Barbara – SBIFF Riviera Theatre
Seattle-Tacoma – AMC Pacific Place 11
St. Louis – Landmark’s Tivoli Theatre
Tampa-St. Pete (Sarasota) – AMC Veterans Expressway 24
Virginia – WAMC Tysons Corner Center 16
Washington D.C. – Warner Bros. Theater at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History
The docs are A-List eligible and otherwise priced at $5 each.
It’s unclear whether other upcoming “Oscars: Spotlight” series, such as those for features, will also be welcomed by AMC. This would potentially include Best Picture nominees such as The Irishman or Marriage Stories, both titles AMC refused to show during their original runs.
“I don’t understand why the theater chains don’t agree to a shorter window, when in reality most films do not play that long, with some titles only staying in theaters for a week or two. Especially specialty titles and documentaries,” said Gregory Hemming, an AMC A-List subscriber from Florida.
AMC Theaters did not respond to a request for comment.
