Regal and Cinemark decline to screen Netflix's 'The Further Mis-Adventures of Cliff Booth'

Netflix’s follow-up to "Once Upon a Time in Hollywood," titled "The Further Mis-Adventures of Cliff Booth," will open on Wednesday, Nov. 25 with a two-week exclusive run in IMAX. The film will then move to Netflix on Dec. 23, giving it a 27-day theatrical window before streaming.

Regal and Cinemark, the second- and third-largest U.S. exhibitor chains, have opted not to book the movie, citing the shortened window as the reason. AMC and independent theaters have committed to the run, adding the film to their schedules alongside holiday releases such as Lionsgate’s "The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping" and Universal’s comedy sequel "Focker-in-Law."

Netflix has been experimenting with longer theatrical windows for select titles, including the Cannes winner "La Bola Negra," Greta Gerwig’s "Narnia: The Magician’s Nephew" (50 days to streaming), and the upcoming holiday release "Charlie Vs The Chocolate Factory" (47 days to streaming). The streamer noted that family-oriented films tend to receive longer windows, while shorter windows have previously limited box-office performance for titles like "Knives Out: Wake Up Dead Man," which earned $4 million domestically after a 17-day run.

Industry observers have questioned why Netflix chose a shortened window for a sequel to a high-grossing Tarantino film, given the original’s $142.5 million domestic total and the generally robust Thanksgiving box-office market.