As we recently discussed, there are changing times ahead in the indie film landscape with Netflix and Amazon muscling onto the scene, but the problems facing Alchemy have more to do with a string of bad fortune. Of all the films they released since last April — which include "Welcome To Me" starring Kristen Wiig, "Strangerland" starring Nicole Kidman, "The Runner" starring Nicolas Cage, and Gaspar Noé‘s 3D sextacular "Love" — only one movie crossed $1 million domestic, and that was the documentary "Meet The Patels." You can’t blame streaming services for that, it appears Alchemy is facing some trouble.
THR reports that A24 has snatched up the domestic rights to Yorgos Lanthimos‘ "The Lobster," which was originally slated to open on March 11th via Alchemy. The distributor had picked up the movie at Cannes last year, a pretty major get, and part of the Alchemy’s string of acquisitions over the past little which have included Nanni Moretti‘s "Mia Madre," James Franco‘s "Zeroville," and Rob Zombie‘s "31." But perhaps tellingly, Alchemy didn’t make a single buy at Sundance this year.
Whether this is a temporary moment that Alchemy is going to use to get back on track, or a sign that they may be folding, we’ll just have to wait and see. As for "The Lobster," no word yet on a release date, but I’d wager A24, who are a savvy studio when it comes to marketing, will create a new campaign for the picture.