Theatrical Release Still Planned For October
Watching Kevin Smith backpedal and rationalize is both amusing and exhausting and we have better things to do with our day, so here’s the short version. Back in January, Smith made a big dog and pony show about how he was going to auction the rights to his indie horror film “Red State” right after the screening in Sundance, before surprising (and angering) everyone by selling the movie to himself for $20 in a big grand statement of rebelliousness. “We’re starting over,” Smith told the audience after his announcement. “It’s not just about making the movie, it’s about releasing the movie. True independence is not about handing your work over to some jackass.” Unless those jackasses happened to be named Lionsgate.
The director and studio announced today that “Red State” will be available digitally starting on Labor Day weekend. In his long and rambling blog post, Smith explains that the plan is still for his SModcast shingle to release the film theatrically but that they need a partner to help them break into the digital realm and Lionsgate was the best fit because….zzzzz….
Anyway, starting Labor Day weekend you can watch the movie in the comfort in your own home for about $10, but if you really want that big screen experience, the movie will still be arriving in October, but it seems instead of a wide release, it will be some kind of special event deal. The theatrical screenings will cost $20 and will be followed by an interactive, live-streamed Q&A as well as a performance of Hollywood Babble-On (indeed). And if you must have it on DVD or BluRay, it will arrive on those formats by the end of the year.
No word yet on if any foreign territories have snapped up the movie, but in Canada, Phase 4 Films will be handling the release with a theatrical bow due sometime in August.