Uncharted stars Tom Holland (right) and Mark Wahlberg.
Sony PicturesThe COVID-19 pandemic, and its profound disruptions to new movies, triggered an unprecedented wave of new theatrical films being released on streaming services the same day they hit cinemas. HBO Max, in particular, became synonymous with the practice.
But the newfound practice has created some misguided hope among moviegoers when any new movie hits theaters. Without any set standards for how movies move to streaming services, lots of people get curious whenever any film hits the big screen whether it’s streaming too.
Can I stream Uncharted?
No. Uncharted is distributed by Sony Pictures, which is making it exclusive to theaters.
Sony has an agreement in place for its 2022 movies to go to Netflix, where Uncharted is expected to stream first. But before the pandemic, this kind of agreement — for what’s known as the pay-one window — typically means movies wouldn’t hit Netflix until about nine months after they first hit theaters, but that timetable may be shortened now that so many movies hit streaming sooner.
What about other movies that have hit theaters recently? Can I stream any of them?
Marry Me, a romantic comedy starring Jennifer Lopez and Owen Wilson, hit theaters last week at the same time it debuted on Peacock. Peacock is owned by Comcast’s NBCUniversal, and Universal Pictures is the distributor of Marry Me. You’ll need to sign up for a $5-a-month or $10-a-month premium tier if you want to watch Halloween Kills or any of Peacock’s other paywalled programming.
A few movies from a few months ago are still streaming on services after they too were available same day as theatrical release. Clifford the Big Red Dog is streaming on Paramount Plus, which also requires a $5- or $10-a-month membership. And Peacock is also streaming Halloween Kills, where (like Marry Me) it’s behind the paywall.
But pretty much any other movie that’s been released in cinemas recently isn’t available on a streaming service yet.
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