Netflix slammed after Mike Flanagan reveals “dangerous” reason he left

Horror mastermind Mike Flanagan has revealed a disappointing detail behind his long-running relationship with Netflix, and it’s all to do with physical media.

For a time, Mike Flanagan was the king of Netflix. After finding success with his Stephen King adaptations like Doctor Sleep and Gerald’s Game, Flanagan found a home on the streamer for his string of horror TV shows. The Haunting of Hill House, The Haunting of Bly Manor, and Midnight Mass were all big hits with subscribers.

However, in 2023, it was revealed that Flanagan would be leaving the streaming service in favor of Amazon Prime Video. Now, Flanagan has shared that he came to a disagreement with Netflix after the platform refused to put his work out on physical media. This included Blu-ray and DVDS, none of which Netflix was interested in releasing.

“In the years I worked at Netflix, I tried very hard to get them to release my work on Blu-ray & DVD,” Flanagan said (via @PhysicalMedia_). “They refused at every turn. It became clear very fast that their only priority was subs, and that they were actively hostile to the idea of physical media.

“This is a very dangerous point of view,” he added. “While companies like Netflix pride themselves on being disruptors, and have proven that they can affect great change in the industry, they sometimes fail to see the difference between disruption and damage. So much that they can find themselves, intentionally or not, doing enormous harm to the very concept of film preservation.”

Amid the ongoing conversation surrounding Netflix and its impact on both theatrical performance and physical media, Flanagan’s comments are incredibly noteworthy. For a figure who became so affiliated with a major streaming service to suddenly up and leave isn’t a small deal, and is yet another affirmation that creators (and fans) do value preservation of their work.

“I absolutely would love nothing more than to own The Fall of The House of Usher and Midnight Mass on Blu-ray, but can’t,” wrote one X user in response to Flanagan’s statement. “This again people is why physical media is important.”

“Funny how companies like Netflix leave so much money on the table by not putting stuff out on physical media,” said another. “Big Entertainment has NEVER understood physical media. They feared VHS tapes back in the day, but that ended up turning flops in the theater into profitable products.”

Flanagan is currently busy with development on other projects, including a few Stephen King adaptations. The Life of Chuck and The Dark Tower reboot are the most prominent, though he’ll also be bringing a “unique take” to The Exorcist franchise with a new movie.

For more, check out the best horror movies to watch on Amazon Prime Video and the best horror movies to watch on Disney Plus. You can also take a look at all the best movies of 2024 so far.