Netflix just parted ways with its top movie creative, Scott Stuber, who oversaw production of a slew films that cost north of $200 million to make.
Meanwhile, the streaming company's top content chief, Bela Bajaria, just declared last week that while theatrical distribution is a "great business" for some, “It’s just not our business.”
A look at Netflix's domestic film rankings last week probably explains the rationale as well as anything could: The Greatest Night in Pop, a simply executed documentary showcasing the chaotic alchemy behind the landmark 1980s music ensemble hit "We Are the World," led all "English-language films" on Netflix with 19.2 million hours of viewing and 11.9 million views from Jan. 29 - Feb. 4.
Last week's rankings: Why Sofia Vergara Miniseries 'Griselda' Was Streaming's 'Queenpin' Last Week -- Netflix Weekly Rankings for January 22-28
In second place was the debut of DreamWorks Animation's family movie Orion and the Dark, which delivered 10 million streaming hours and 15.5 million views.
Even on the low side, we have to imagine a DreamWorks Animation CGI film, even one them went straight into the SVOD market, cost at least $50 million to produce.
We don't know what it costs Dorothy Street Productions to get Lionel Richie in a room, and have him recount that electric evening/early morning back in January 1985, during which the greatest music stars of perhaps the greatest era in pop came together and made a single in one session ... all in the name of curbing North African famine.
But we're willing to bet it was less than 50 million bucks. By a lot.
Elsewhere in Netflix's top domestic films rankings for the week ending Feb. 4, The Vow -- a 12-year-old romantic drama starring Rachel McAdams and Channing Tatum, which drew a middling $196.7 million at the global box office -- finished No. 7, with 6.6 million viewing hours and 3.8 million views.
Meanwhile, Fury, a 2014 World War II movie starring Brad Pitt as a battle-tested tank commander leading a crew (ragtag, of course) of Shia LaBeouf, Michael Pena and Jon Berenthal, grossed an also-middling $217.8 million in global box office receipts. It debuted on Netflix's domestic movie charts last week at No. 9 with 7.3 million viewing hours and 5.3 million views.
Both films originated from the vault of notorious "arms dealer" Sony Pictures Entertainment.
Netflix is finding ways to drive viewer engagement without, say, giving a bag of money to the Russo Bros.
For the week, it should be noted that Netflix's English-language movies category was down 40% in engagement vs. the same week last year. Overall viewership was down nearly 16%.
Overall, limited series Griselda, starring Sofia Vergara as a real life Colombian drug queenpin, remained Netflix's top program, holding all of its week 1 audience with 114.1 million viewing hours and 20.6 million views.
UK-produced period-docudrama Alexander: The Making of a God had what has to be considered a disappointing debut, scoring 27.7 million viewing hours and 7.1 million views.
But the Netflix premiere of BBC series The Tourist generated a No. 6 finish on the streamer's English-language TV show rankings, scoring 11.4 million hours of streaming and 2 million views.
