Filmmaker Mike Flanagan believes that “Physical media is critical,” which is not a belief that was shared by his former employers at the Netflix streaming service. Flanagan recently said that he tried very hard to get Netflix to release the work he did for them on Blu-ray and DVD, but they “refused at every turn.” But while several Flanagan projects remain on Netflix and aren’t available on physical media, he has revealed that he has taken his 2016 film Hush away from the streaming service so he can give it a long-awaited physical media release!
During an appearance at the ATX Television Festival in Austin, Texas, Flanagan said (with thanks to Slash Film for the transcription), “We took it back because I really value physical media. And Netflix, by policy, it does not work in their business plan. So we took it back. We do have a new home for it. I can’t say where. I can say there will be a physical release, and that there will be a lot of really awesome surprises that we’ve been working on for a year to make this release awesome. It’s something that will be really exciting. The fans have been waiting. If you’ve been looking for Hush and it’s nowhere to be found, it will be back soon. It will be everywhere. You’ll be able to stream it. You’ll be able to have it in your collection, and it’s gonna be worth the wait because we did some really awesome new stuff for it.“
Getting physical media releases for his work is so important to Flanagan, he has even show support for the bootleggers who rip his shows from Netflix and burn them to disc. He said, “‘Pirates’ are, in some cases, the only hope for archival preservation of a growing amount of shows and movies. I have purchased several pirated Blu-ray copies of Midnight Mass, am very impressed with the quality and presentation, and I am profoundly grateful they exist. Godspeed, noble archivists.“
Hush has the following synopsis: After losing her hearing as a teenager, author Maddie Young has lived a life of isolation fully retreating into her now silent world. When the masked face of a psychotic killer appears in the window of her secluded home, she must push herself beyond her mental and physical limits in order to survive the night.
The film stars Kate Siegel, John Gallagher Jr., Michael Trucco, Samantha Sloyan, and Emma Graves.
Are you glad to hear Hush will finally be getting a physical media release? Share your thoughts on this one by leaving a comment below.