All Of Sony’s Films Will Head to Netflix After Their Theatrical, Home Entertainment Windows Under New Pay-1 Deal

Netflix and Sony Pictures Entertainment have unveiled a new multi-year Pay-1 licensing agreement that will, for the first time, give a single streaming service exclusive first-window rights to a major studio’s films worldwide.

Under the deal, Sony’s theatrical films will stream on Netflix worldwide after their full theatrical and home entertainment windows have expired. While Netflix already holds Pay-1 rights to Sony films in several territories — the U.S., Germany, and parts of Southeast Asia — the new agreement extends that relationship worldwide. The rollout will occur gradually as existing territory agreements expire, with full global coverage expected in early 2029.

In addition to first-window rights for new theatrical releases, Netflix will also license a selection of Sony’s film and television catalog titles as part of the agreement. The two companies already have a tremendous working relationship, with Sony producing Netflix Originals like KPop Demon Hunters and The Mitchells vs. the Machines, and Fixed.

Netflix executive Lauren Smith, vice president of licensing and programming strategy, emphasized the audience appeal of Sony’s slate in a release:

Our members all over the world love movies, and giving them exclusive access to Sony’s much-loved films adds incredible value to their subscriptions. Sony’s impressive slate of iconic film franchises like Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse and originals like Anyone But You have been popular with our U.S. audience, and now we’re excited to expand that offering to our members all around the world.

Paul Littmann, Sony Pictures Television’s EVP of global distribution, added:

Our partnership with Netflix has always been incredibly valuable. This new Pay-1 deal takes that partnership to the next level and reinforces the enduring appeal of our theatrical releases to Netflix’s global audience. It also further underscores the strength of our independence and unique ability to create meaningful opportunities that benefit our creative stakeholders, consumers, and world-class partners.

Animated titles that will be among the first films to stream on Netflix under the new arrangement include Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse, the final chapter of Sony Pictures Animation’s blockbuster Spider-Verse trilogy, and Buds, of which very little is known.

The agreement solidifies Netflix as a primary Pay-1 destination for major studio releases and expands a relationship that has proved beneficial to both companies. Whether or not SPA’s KPop Demon Hunters would have been the breakout hit it eventually became without Netflix’s global distribution network is impossible to say, but given the struggles that most original properties have had at the box office in recent years, many have proposed that the film’s organic growth online could only have happened in the streaming era.