Willem Dafoe says “challenging” movies aren’t popular thanks to streaming

Willem Dafoe has said he doesn’t think “challenging” movies are popular any more thanks to the onset of streaming.

The actor, who is currently promoting his latest film Poor Things with Emma Stone, opened up about the current situation of the film industry in a new interview with The Guardian last weekend (January 7).

He told the publication he thought the way people are viewing films now more via streaming has affected the types of films being made as a result.

He explained: “…The kind of attention that people give at home isn’t the same. More difficult movies, more challenging movies can not do as well, when you don’t have an audience that’s really paying attention. That’s a big thing.

“I miss the social thing of where movies fit in the world. You go see a movie, you go out to dinner, you talk about it later, and that spreads out. People now go home, they say, ‘Hey, honey, let’s watch something stupid tonight,’ and they flip through and they watch five minutes of 10 movies, and they say, forget it, let’s go to bed. Where’s that discourse found?”

He went on to say he thinks the way studios are making films has altered as a result too. He continued: “They aren’t making movies the same way they used to. They’re being financed by toy companies and other entities, and they become the vehicle to make the movies, because they know how to do that. Streaming, they’re becoming like a monopoly, they have the means of production and distribution. And so it’s very complicated.”

Dafoe’s latest film won at last night’s Golden Globes ceremony, including Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy and Best Performance by a Female Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy for Emma Stone.

The darkly comedic fantasy film is directed by Yorgos Lanthimos (The Favourite, The Lobster) and sees Stone’s character being brought back to life by Dafoe, who plays a Frankenstein-like scientist in the film.

Stone, who also produced the film, received an award for her performance at the Palm Springs International Film Awards last week (January 4).

Poor Things is released in UK cinemas later this week on January 12.