Netflix just surprise-dropped a $700 million Chinese blockbuster, The Wandering Earth, on its platform but not many people have noticed. The sci-fi movie about humanity's attempts to save the Earth from the destructive powers of the sun, directed by Frant Gwo, released earlier this year in Chinese theaters to much fanfare. Within weeks, it established itself as a massive blockbuster, becoming the second-most successful Chinese film of all time. The success was so unprecedented that the Netflix hierarchy immediately decided to lap it up for its streaming platform. However, as reported by IndieWire, despite the movie's phenomenal success in Asian markets, Netflix doesn't seem to have done much to promote the film. Although Netflix Asia dropped a trailer for The Wandering Earth on April 29, one day before uploading the movie, the streaming platform made no mention of the movie on its official U.S. Youtube page or in the press releases where it usually shares the upcoming titles for each month. While such a hushed move would make sense if the film was an independent, small-time title, it makes little sense for the streaming giant not to promote a movie which is the third-largest blockbuster of this year, just behind Marvel Studios and Disney's Endgame and Captain Marvel; one of the biggest sci-fi movies of all time; and the second highest-grossing non-English film of all time. Critics have argued that considering the universal appeal of the film's subject, its production prowess being on par with big-time Hollywood movies, and its overwhelming success, Netflix should have done a little more than surprise-dropping The Wandering Earth for western audiences. Its desire not to promote the movie becomes all the more confusing when one considers that Gwo's feature is exactly the kind of movie one would expect to become a global behemoth. What Western media got wrong about China's blockbuster 'The Wandering Earth.' https://t.co/vJPUVMnc7A — VICE (@VICE) May 8, 2019 It remains to be seen whether a movie which did so well domestically in China causes the same excitement in the West, but Netflix's approach would definitely not help its chances. One would think if Netflix is more attuned to the idea of presenting only western-made content for its western audiences with fanfare and a lot of promotion, it would eventually be detrimental to the platform's long-term success strategy of creating global content. In any case, there is little doubt that The Wandering Earth has wide appeal, and even if Netflix didn't promote the film for you to have heard about it, you could watch it for yourself now and decide if it's worth all the hullabaloo.<doc-sep>Netflix has long been criticized for its lack of marketing and promotion outside of its flagship series such as House of Cards and Stranger Things. This especially applies to the streamer’s expansive library of international content, which doesn’t receive much of a push stateside. Take The Wandering Earth, for example, a Chinese sci-fi blockbuster from director Frant Gwo that tells the story of a distant future in which the sun is about to expand into a red giant and devour the Earth, prompting humankind to make an audacious attempt to save the planet. Foreign language films don’t always capture the American zeitgeist. But if Netflix’s own Roma, which included nary a word of English, could become an Oscars powerhouse, why isn’t the $700 million–grossing Wandering Earth getting any love? As of this writing, it’s China’s second-highest-earning film in history, an impressive feat given the increasing importance of the Middle Kingdom box office. It sits just behind Avengers: Endgame and Captain Marvel as the third-biggest global hit of the year. To paraphrase the great Ron Burgundy, that’s kind of a big deal. Subscribe to Observer’s Entertainment Newsletter Netflix Asia unveiled a trailer for The Wandering Earth on April 29—a whopping 24 hours ahead of its April 30 premiere on the streamer. Previous studio cast-offs that Netflix gobbled up like The Cloverfield Paradox and Mowgli received significantly more promotion (the former even got a Super Bowl ad).This may not be a direct apples-to-apples comparison, but it speaks to the platform’s selective and often underwhelming marketing choices. That the company shells out roughly $2 billion annually in paid media efforts makes it all the more confounding. Traditional TV series on linear networks usually receive a four-month window of advertising ahead of their premieres, while blockbuster films generally rev up the awareness campaign six to eight months before the release date. As a direct-to-consumer online streaming service, Netflix doesn’t need to follow these guidelines, but perhaps it should acknowledge that its homepage-based platform and algorithmic suggestions don’t always yield the intended effect. Netflix is a purpose-based viewing model in that users tend to know what they want to watch before they log on. How can they decide if The Wandering Earth—or any other number of shows and movies that get lost in Netflix’s sea of content—is worth watching if they don’t even know it exists? The streamer wants to release upwards of 90 original films per year on top of its continued avalanche of in-house series. Considering they’re new offerings, they need strong marketing pushes to build buzz, attract audiences and sustain engagement. Subscribers need an anchor lest they scroll right on by without a second glance. The Wandering Earth‘s catch-and-release strategy feels like a microcosm of the streamer’s bigger issues with promotion.<doc-sep>
Frant Gwo's "The Wandering Earth" is the third highest grossing film of 2019. Did you know it's available to stream right now? One of the biggest movies in the world is currently available to stream on Netflix, but chances are likely most subscribers have no idea about it. “The Wandering Earth,” Frant Gwo’s science-fiction blockbuster about humanity’s attempts to prevent the the sun from destroying the earth, opened in China earlier this year to “Avengers: Endgame” numbers at the box office. The movie is currently China’s second highest-grossing release in history and with $700 million at the worldwide box office it’s the third biggest global release of 2019 behind only Marvel Studios and Disney’s “Endgame” and “Captain Marvel.” Despite that huge box office haul, “The Wandering Earth” landed on Netflix without any fanfare and barely any marketing. Netflix Asia debuted an official trailer for the blockbuster on April 29, which was just a day before the film’s April 30 launch on the company’s regional service. The trailer was never even uploaded to Netflix’s official U.S. YouTube page, nor was “The Wandering Earth” mentioned on Netflix’s official press releases naming its new film additions for April and May. With its $700 million box office haul, “The Wandering Earth” is the second highest-grossing non-English film of all time and one of the biggest science-fiction films of all time. One would think a global blockbuster of this size would be a bigger deal (just look at the fanfare that came with “Avengers: Infinity War” landing on Netflix last Christmas), but Netflix hasn’t capitalized on the film’s success to make it a must-see for U.S. audiences. With no awareness, barely any U.S. Netflix subscribers realize one of the biggest global hits of 2019 is available to stream right now. Netflix’s official synopsis for “The Wandering Earth” reads: “The film is the story of a distant future in which the sun is about to expand into a red giant and devour the Earth, prompting mankind to make an audacious attempt to save the planet. The multi-generational heroes build ten-thousand stellar engines in an effort to propel Planet Earth out of the solar system, in the hope of finding a new celestial home. During the 2,500 year-long journey, a group of daring heroes emerge to defend human civilization from unexpected dangers and new enemies, and to ensure the survival of humanity in this age of the wandering Earth.” “The Wandering Earth” stars Qu Chuxiao, Li Guangjie, Ng Man-tat, Zhao Jinmai, and Wu Jing. Sign Up: Stay on top of the latest breaking film and TV news! Sign up for our Email Newsletters here.