'The Farewell' Director Turned Down A Streaming Service Offering Twice As Much Money In Favor Of Theatrical Release

Filmmaker Lulu Wang is on the precipice of becoming one of the biggest names in indie film, thanks to her latest project “The Farewell.” After an incredible premiere at this year’s Sundance, Wang’s second feature film as a director was quickly part of a bidding war between some major distributors. And with offers on the table, Wang had to choose between theatrical release and a streaming platform.

According to a new profile of Wang in Vulture, the filmmaker’s decision didn’t actually come down to money. Even though the money was significant.

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“The Farewell” stars Awkwafina as a young woman that goes to China to see her dying grandmother. However, unlike a typical situation where the grandmother is aware of her impending fate, the young woman’s family has decided to collectively keep the diagnosis a secret from the aging matriarch, and instead, bring joy and family to her on her deathbed. The story is hugely personal for Wang, who based much of the film on her own true experiences.

And it’s that authenticity and emotion that led to A24 rushing out to spend a reported $6 million to $7 million on the rights to the film, which is twice the production budget. But Wang says that A24 wasn’t the only offer out there. A streaming service (she didn’t name who) had offered her twice the amount that A24 was going to spend, but wouldn’t promise a theatrical release.

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Thus, Wang had a decision on her hands.

“I was pretty upset because we were all so happy with the [A24] deal before this other offer came in,” she said. “That’s kind of how capitalism works — it ruins things because it shifts your perspective entirely.”

To help make the decision, she went back to her mother and explained the unexpected situation.

She told her mom, “I can buy you a house now. And you can tell all your friends.” However, her mother wasn’t interested in that, and replied, “Why would you buy me a freaking house? I already have a house. The film is your baby and you have to give it to the place that is not necessarily the wealthiest, but will give it the most love and joy and bring it into the world in the right way.”

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And so, the filmmaker went with A24 and a theatrical release, hoping that this will bring her film to the world in the way she intended. A similar situation was given to the filmmakers behind the 2018 breakout film “Crazy Rich Asians,” which also had a predominantly Asian cast. And the decision to say no to Netflix and go with a traditional theatrical release paid huge dividends, as the film grossed over $238 million worldwide.

Obviously, A24 and Wang don’t have expectations quite as huge as that, but with the strong buzz surrounding “The Farewell,” with awards consideration being likely, there’s a chance that her feature film could be one of the indie breakouts of the summer.

“The Farewell” arrives in theaters on July 12.