Like so many rituals this year, Hollywood’s holiday rollout is happening mostly online. From big-budget movies to lure families over Christmas, to serious-minded films to attract award nominations, they’re appearing on digital platforms, often at the same time (or soon after) they debut in theaters.
It’s a tradeoff for filmmakers who know fewer people will see their movies in the ideal setting they had envisioned. “The movie plays much better on a big IMAX screen,” says director Patty Jenkins, whose “Wonder Woman 1984” is hitting theaters and IMAX screens wherever they’re open on Christmas Day, the same time it arrives in living rooms on HBO Max. “Certainly the experience is far better the bigger the TV and the better the sound. It hurts a little bit to think of people watching it on their phone, but they do inevitably anyway.”
Even with concerns about the future of the theatrical experience, there is convenience—and a broad selection of projects from some of Hollywood’s biggest talents. Below, some highlights from the films and TV series coming over the holiday entertainment season.
‘Sound of Metal’
In theaters; Amazon , Dec. 4
