{"id":2336541,"date":"2026-03-19T10:16:15","date_gmt":"2026-03-19T10:16:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/?p=2336541"},"modified":"2026-03-19T10:16:15","modified_gmt":"2026-03-19T10:16:15","slug":"netflix-doubles-down-on-original-storytelling-in-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/netflix-doubles-down-on-original-storytelling-in-2026\/","title":{"rendered":"Netflix doubles down on original storytelling in 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Rather than chasing sequels and reboots, Netflix is betting its 2026 film strategy on a massive investment in original storytelling and a renewed focus on the theatrical comedy.<\/p>\n

The streaming giant\u2019s need for original content is one of the main reasons Netflix fought fiercely to acquire Warner Bros<\/a>. But even after losing the bid to Paramount earlier this month<\/a>, the priority remains.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re zigging where legacy studios are zagging,\u201d Dan Lin, Netflix\u2019s film chairman, said Wednesday at Netflix\u2019s slate event in Hollywood. <\/p>\n

Last year, 18 of the top 20 theatrical films were based on already established intellectual property, like with sequels and remakes. The only two original ideas to break through were Ryan Coogler\u2019s \u201cSinners\u201d<\/a> and Zach Cregger\u2019s \u201cWeapons.\u201d<\/a> Both of these films were received well by audiences and earned golden statues at this year\u2019s Oscars.<\/a> <\/p>\n

Lin said that at Netflix<\/a>, 2025\u2019s slate was the \u201cexact opposite,\u201d where half of the films it released last year were based on original storytelling. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe have a very healthy content budget. So if there\u2019s a great movie out there, we\u2019ll go out and either build it or acquire it,\u201d Lin said.<\/p>\n

Bela Bajaria, the company\u2019s chief content officer, said the company isn\u2019t too concerned with the theatrical element that other studios can offer when hunting for these original stories, as Netflix is a streaming-first company. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve always had competition. This isn\u2019t really any different,\u201d said Bajaria. \u201cIt\u2019s to understand what the competition is, not head in the sand at all. [We have] to understand what the market is and continue to look ahead.\u201d<\/p>\n

It\u2019s not just original ideas that Netflix is scouting; the streamer\u2019s also looking to fill gaps in genres. In recent years, comedies have fallen out of favor with major studios <\/a>\u2014 leaving room for streamers like Netflix to expand. This year, Netflix is looking to break through with upcoming comedy productions like Kevin Hart\u2019s bachelor party-driven \u201c72 Hours,\u201d John Cena and Eric Andr\u00e9\u2019s buddy comedy \u201cLittle Brother\u201d and Eva Longoria\u2019s \u201cFifth Wheel,\u201d which Lin describes as \u201cour version of \u2018Bridesmaids.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re taking the chance, and we\u2019re making the movies,\u201d Lin said. \u201cIt\u2019s what we\u2019re delivering, I hope, [it\u2019s] what audiences want and what they\u2019re craving. There are a lot of genres that you just can\u2019t find in theaters anymore. So, we\u2019re making those kinds of movies.\u201d<\/p>\n

In addition to emphasizing comedies, there\u2019s a lot of opportunity to develop young adult films, Lin said. Netflix has upcoming titles such as \u201cVoicemails for Isabelle,\u201d starring Zoey Deutch and Nick Robinson, and \u201cRoommates,\u201d with Sadie Sandler, to draw in younger movie watchers.<\/p>\n

One genre in which Netflix doesn\u2019t see much success is live musical adaptations, so it\u2019s \u201cnot an area that I\u2019m leaning into,\u201d Lin said. He first joined the company in 2024 and has since green-lighted 88 films.<\/p>\n

Netflix subscribers watch about seven movies a month, according to the streamer\u2019s data. So, with the push for original stories, the streamer is hoping to meet its consumers\u2019 demands. <\/p>\n

The current strategy is to release up to four \u201cevent films\u201d a year. For 2026, Netflix is looking at Greta Gerwig\u2019s \u201cNarnia\u201d adaptation and David Fincher\u2019s follow-up to \u201cOnce Upon a Time … in Hollywood\u201d as its big hitters.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s all very under wraps right now, but it\u2019s something that I\u2019m just so thrilled about because it was the book of my childhood. It was the book series that I loved, and I lived through, and I spent so much time imagining myself inside of Narnia,\u201d Gerwig said in a video message during the Netflix event. \u201cIt\u2019s been a joy and an honor to be the person who gets to imagine this universe.\u201d<\/p>\n

Gerwig\u2019s \u201cNarnia\u201d is set to hit Imax this Thanksgiving and start streaming on Netflix come Christmas.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

\u2018 The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n

\u2018 Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.latimes.com \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Rather than chasing sequels and reboots, Netflix is betting its 2026 film strategy on a massive investment in original storytelling and a renewed focus on the theatrical comedy. The streaming giant\u2019s need for original content is one of the main reasons Netflix fought fiercely to acquire Warner Bros. But even after losing the bid to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2336542,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[25172],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2336541","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-entertainment"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Netflix-doubles-down-on-original-storytelling-in-2026.com2F982F152F13a274b94b8fbcf35e04c998.jpeg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2336541","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2336541"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2336541\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2336543,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2336541\/revisions\/2336543"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2336542"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2336541"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2336541"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2336541"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}