Predicting how long a movie will run
March 19, 2018 5:47 PM   Subscribe

Help me guess: will Annihilation still be playing in or near San Diego on the 9th of April? (Ideally in IMAX, but regular would be fine if not.)
posted by kalapierson to Media & Arts (9 answers total)
 
I wouldn't count on it. Per this tweet (from critic and Annihilation superfan Matt Zoller Seitz) at least some theaters have to give the film back to Paramount at the end of this week. Unless you're able to call specific theaters to ask, I'd make every effort to see it this week if you can.

IMAX, I'd say there is no chance.
posted by acidic at 5:54 PM on March 19, 2018 [1 favorite]


Former movie studio worker here. IMAX likely zero chance. Slight chance to see it at a multiplex, potentially just one or two showings per day. High chance of not being able to see it.
posted by BlahLaLa at 6:30 PM on March 19, 2018 [2 favorites]


No way on IMAX-- Ready Player One is likely to push any other movies out of IMAX by then.

Multiplex seems possibly but not likely.

The 9th is a Monday, so the schedules for that week should be fixed in place by the night of Thursday the 5th which will hold through the following Thursday night (barring some catastrophic revelation about Natalie Portman or other castmembers that might really sour the public on them); you can scan around the theaters by that time.
posted by Sunburnt at 12:39 AM on March 20, 2018 [1 favorite]


Annihilation did not crack the top 10 grossing movies this week. Your odds are extremely small unless there is a dedicated indie theater that has 1-2 showings. Most large cities do have one of those.
posted by OnTheLastCastle at 6:42 AM on March 20, 2018


I think I read somewhere that since Netflix bought the movie it will show up on Netflix very soon if you are in the US. The studio that made it sold it to Netflix instead of doing any international releases and Netflix started streaming to non US countries immediately when it was released in the US. So if you are outside the US and have Netflix you can see it there.

It is a beautiful movie and worth seeing in the theater. I doubt if it was released in IMAX anywhere. FWIW it is still showing this week at a multi-plex near me in Raleigh NC.
posted by Justin Case at 7:34 AM on March 20, 2018


I saw it just two weeks ago (March 6) at my city's relatively posh indie theater -- the one that mainly specializes in cozy European travelogues and ponderous historical dramas -- but looking at the listings now it's been gone since March 9th.

Usually they hold on to a given film for at least a month, so either ticket sales were especially low (I saw it on a Tuesday night with a decently-large crowd, so maybe not?) or they were compelled to return it to Paramount as cited by Seitz above.

My sense it that since Netflix bailed out Paramount for the internatiional streaming rights (it's already on Netflix UK and elsewhere) it will likely turn up on Netflix US sometime in the next few months. I'd make plans to watch it on the biggest home screen with the best sound system you have available to you, bribe a home-theater enthusiast friend if necessary, because it's that good.
posted by Strange Interlude at 9:29 AM on March 20, 2018


Response by poster: Thanks all! I know I want to see it in a theater, so I’ll figure out how to do that earlier.
posted by kalapierson at 12:57 PM on March 20, 2018


Happy Monday the 9th! Does it look like you'll get to see it today?
posted by Sunburnt at 10:04 AM on April 9, 2018


Response by poster: Thanks for checking in! I watched carefully and it did actually persist here in CA (and hasn’t persisted in Philly, where I’m about to return) so I do get to see it this evening!
posted by kalapierson at 9:23 AM on April 11, 2018 [2 favorites]


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