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 giantโs need for original content is one of the main reasons Netflix fought fiercely to acquire Warner Bros. But even after losing the bid to Paramount earlier this month, the priority remains.
โWeโre zigging where legacy studios are zagging,โ Dan Lin, Netflixโs film chairman, said Wednesday at Netflixโs slate event in Hollywood.
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 Cooglerโs โSinnersโ and Zach Creggerโs โWeapons.โ Both of these films were received well by audiences and earned golden statues at this yearโs Oscars.
Lin said that at Netflix, 2025โs slate was the โexact opposite,โ where half of the films it released last year were based on original storytelling.
โWe have a very healthy content budget. So if thereโs a great movie out there, weโll go out and either build it or acquire it,โ Lin said.
Bela Bajaria, the companyโs chief content officer, said the company isnโt too concerned with the theatrical element that other studios can offer when hunting for these original stories, as Netflix is a streaming-first company.
โWeโve always had competition. This isnโt really any different,โ said Bajaria. โItโs 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.โ
Itโs not just original ideas that Netflix is scouting; the streamerโs also looking to fill gaps in genres. In recent years, comedies have fallen out of favor with major studios โ leaving room for streamers like Netflix to expand. This year, Netflix is looking to break through with upcoming comedy productions like Kevin Hartโs bachelor party-driven โ72 Hours,โ John Cena and Eric Andrรฉโs buddy comedy โLittle Brotherโ and Eva Longoriaโs โFifth Wheel,โ which Lin describes as โour version of โBridesmaids.โโ
โWeโre taking the chance, and weโre making the movies,โ Lin said. โItโs what weโre delivering, I hope, [itโs] what audiences want and what theyโre craving. There are a lot of genres that you just canโt find in theaters anymore. So, weโre making those kinds of movies.โ
In addition to emphasizing comedies, thereโs a lot of opportunity to develop young adult films, Lin said. Netflix has upcoming titles such as โVoicemails for Isabelle,โ starring Zoey Deutch and Nick Robinson, and โRoommates,โ with Sadie Sandler, to draw in younger movie watchers.
One genre in which Netflix doesnโt see much success is live musical adaptations, so itโs โnot an area that Iโm leaning into,โ Lin said. He first joined the company in 2024 and has since green-lighted 88 films.
Netflix subscribers watch about seven movies a month, according to the streamerโs data. So, with the push for original stories, the streamer is hoping to meet its consumersโ demands.
The current strategy is to release up to four โevent filmsโ a year. For 2026, Netflix is looking at Greta Gerwigโs โNarniaโ adaptation and David Fincherโs follow-up to โOnce Upon a Time … in Hollywoodโ as its big hitters.
โItโs all very under wraps right now, but itโs something that Iโm 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,โ Gerwig said in a video message during the Netflix event. โItโs been a joy and an honor to be the person who gets to imagine this universe.โ
Gerwigโs โNarniaโ is set to hit Imax this Thanksgiving and start streaming on Netflix come Christmas.
