New Netflix Film ‘Bird Box’ Will See A Theatrical Run

Netflix appears to be trying for a chance at qualifying for an industry award like the Oscars and Golden Globes with a limited theatrical run of their newest horror film, Bird Box, reports the Verge. For those who haven’t watched the trailer of this upcoming movie, check out the above video and try not to let the tension catch your breath.

Bird Box is an adaptation of Josh Malerman’s debut novel of the same title. The novel has been described as quiet, spooky, and perfect for Halloween reading this cold October. The film, however, looks to be tense, scream-filled, and explosive, judging by the recent trailer.

Centering around a young mother and her two children, Bird Box aspires to take viewers through a post-apocalyptic world overrun by terrifying creatures. In Malerman’s novel, no one actually knows what these monsters look like because anyone who sees a creature goes completely insane and immediately kills themselves. These suicides are often in a spectacularly horrific fashion throughout the novel, and as such will likely be depicted in the same way for the Netflix film. Survivors in this bleak world try to stay protected by wearing blindfolds, which as one can imagine, leaves them vulnerable to various other dangers and turns even the smallest of sounds into a tense moment of possible threat.

The film will star Oscar-winning actress Sandra Bullock as Malorie, the young mother trying to protect her two children in this post-apocalyptic nightmare. Other cast members include big-name actors such as John Malkovich, Jacki Weaver, Rosa Salazar, and American Horror Story icon, Sarah Paulson. Susanne Bier, a legendary filmmaker whose 2010 Danish feature, In a Better World, won Best Foreign Language Oscar, will be directing Bird Box. Bier has also won a Primetime Emmy for her miniseries The Night Manager. Her mere presence suggests to some the seriousness with which Netflix is taking Bird Box as a more prestigious and ambitious creation than the various other streaming films that are more common for the platform.

Due to arrive on Netflix this December 21, Bird Box will first have a limited theatrical run, which many are taking as Netflix’s first move to qualifying for an industry award.

Some had worried that a film adaptation of Malerman’s Bird box would be difficult to pull off, given that much of the screen time involves blinded characters who are unable to see anything for themselves. Bier, however, looks to have handled it quite well, judging by the trailer.