Road House director Doug Liman had previously declared that he would boycott the SXSW premiere of the reimagining, but according to Deadline, he’s changed his mind.
The outlet states that Doug Liman is in the Paramount Theatre right now, although not in any official capacity. He won’t be introducing Road House but will just be in the crowd watching. As Road House is destined for a streaming debut on Prime Video, this will be one of Liman’s only chances to see the movie in a packed theater.
Liman has stated that when the project began, it was meant to have a theatrical release, but that all changed when Amazon bought MGM. The streaming studio allegedly told Liman, “Make a great film and we will see what happens” regarding its release. When it was officially announced that Road House would stream exclusively on Prime Video, Liman was upset and announced that he would be boycotting the SXSW premiere.
“When Road House opens the SXSW film festival, I won’t be attending,” Liman said. “The movie is fantastic, maybe my best, and I’m sure it will bring the house down and possibly have the audience dancing in their seats during the end credits. But I will not be there. My plan had been to silently protest Amazon’s decision to stream a movie so clearly made for the big screen. But Amazon is hurting way more than just me and my film. If I don’t speak up about Amazon, who will? So here we go.“
Liman added, “Contrary to their public statements, Amazon has no interest in supporting cinemas. Amazon will exclusively stream Road House on Amazon Prime. Amazon asked me and the film community to trust them and their public statements about supporting cinemas, and then they turned around and are using Road House to sell plumbing fixtures.“
Jake Gyllenhaal, who stars in Road House, commented on Doug Liman’s boycott, saying that although he supported it, Amazon was always clear that the film would make a streaming debut. “I adore Doug’s tenacity, and I think he is advocating for filmmakers, and film in the cinema, and theatrical releases,” he said. “But, I mean, Amazon was always clear that it was streaming. I just want as many people to see it as possible. And I think we’re living in a world that’s changing in how we see and watch movies, and how they’re made. What’s clear to me, and what I loved so much, was [Liman’s] deep love for this movie, and his pride at how much he cares for it, how good he feels it is, and how much people should see it.“
Road House will debut on Prime Video on March 21st in more than 240 territories worldwide.