Fans hunting for news on “The Further Mis-Adventures of Cliff Booth” want one answer: When can they stream it? The Cliff Booth Netflix release date is set for Dec. 23, giving fans a confirmed window to watch Brad Pitt’s return as the fan-favorite stuntman turned Hollywood fixer, according to Polygon.
The film is the first new Quentin Tarantino screenplay to reach the screen since 2019’s “Once Upon a Time … in Hollywood,” though he did not direct it. David Fincher took the helm instead, working from a script Tarantino wrote, Polygon reported.
Cliff Booth Netflix Release Date and Streaming Details
Netflix will debut “The Further Mis-Adventures of Cliff Booth” on Dec. 23, according to Polygon. That date lands four weeks after the film opens in theaters on Nov. 25.
There’s a catch for anyone hoping to split the difference. The theatrical engagement is an exclusive two-week IMAX run, according to Netflix, so the film is expected to leave theaters well before it arrives for subscribers at home. Fans who want the big-screen version should plan on catching it in the first two weeks.
Theatrical Run Comes First
The IMAX rollout centers on AMC, which has about 200 IMAX screens in the U.S. With independent cinemas added in, the release reaches more than 500 screens worldwide, according to Variety. Regal and Cinemark, two of the country’s largest chains, declined to book the film, so not every IMAX location will carry it.
Viewers who caught an early look already have a sense of what’s coming. Tarantino screened the first 17 minutes of the film at AFI Fest in Los Angeles, telling the crowd, “Well, I could talk a little bit about ‘The Further Mis-Adventures of Cliff Booth,’ or I could show you the first 17 minutes,” according to Deadline.
What the Story Covers
The film picks up in 1977, eight years after the events of “Once Upon a Time … in Hollywood,” according to Polygon. Pitt reprises his Oscar-winning role as Cliff Booth, who has traded stunt work for a new gig as a Hollywood fixer, smoothing over problems for powerful people while working day jobs as a bartender or projectionist.
Talent agent Karen Crosby, played by Elizabeth Debicki, brings Cliff into a mess involving her client, television star Charlie Peters (Scott Caan). Cliff soon gets pulled into Charlie’s world, including his wife, Toni (Carla Gugino), and former pro football champion turned actor Roderick “Hot Rod” Harrison, played by Yahya Abdul-Mateen II. The real trouble comes courtesy of the Verdusco brothers, a pair of gangsters played by Matt Groove and JB Tadena. Timothy Olyphant also returns, reprising his role as actor James Stacy.
Polygon described the film’s shift away from the fairy-tale tone of “Once Upon a Time … in Hollywood” toward a grittier crime story populated by violent and eccentric characters of 1970s Los Angeles.
Before You Watch: Runtime and Script Changes
Viewers should know the film went through a significant edit before reaching its final form. Fincher told Empire that Tarantino’s first draft ran 230 pages and “was essentially two movies,” and he ultimately cut roughly 60 pages from that screenplay.
Tarantino described his own script as having “the flavor of an Elmore Leonard paperback: a crime-story paperback feel,” according to Empire. Fincher explained his approach to the material differently, saying, “I liked the idea that it’s a story around a bonfire. … It wasn’t about the plot as much as it was about how the participants collided with one another in the back alleys of Hollywood in 1977.”
The finished film runs about two hours and 20 minutes. Fincher told Empire his first assembly came in at two hours and 18 minutes, which surprised Tarantino.
Fans wanting more of the story beyond the film have another option. Tarantino’s novel “The Adventures of Cliff Booth,” his own take on the character’s further exploits, arrives Dec. 8 from HarperCollins, landing between the film’s IMAX opening and its Netflix debut.
What’s Next
The countdown now runs toward two dates. Theatrical audiences get first access on Nov. 25 for a limited two-week IMAX run, and the Cliff Booth Netflix release date of Dec. 23 follows four weeks later for anyone planning to stream it from home. Pitt’s performance in the original “Once Upon a Time … in Hollywood” earned him the Academy Award for best supporting actor, giving this sequel built-in attention heading into both release windows.
Readers tracking Fincher’s other streaming work can check out David Fincher’s Netflix deal ending after six years, and those curious about Netflix’s broader performance lately can read about the Netflix earnings report and stock reaction.
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