George Clooney and Brad Pitt’s Wolfs isn’t getting a wide theatrical release, but it is getting a sequel

In yet another instance of “What the fuck is going on with Apple TV+’s release strategy,” the streamer has announced it’s shifting the George Clooney/Brad Pitt vehicle Wolfs from a wide theatrical release to a limited one, according to Variety. However, it has also already greenlit a sequel to be written and helmed by director Jon Watts. Trying to understand the ways Apple chooses to throw its money around is utterly futile. As a tech company it is terrifying; as a production company, it is inscrutable. Might as well surrender to double Wolfs. 

The thing that makes this so puzzling is that giving Wolfs a sequel suggests that Apple feels pretty good about this movie ahead of its premiere at the Venice Film Festival, which makes sense! No matter the content of the film, the Clooney and Pitt team-up is guaranteed to drum up interest. Theatrically, a Clooney-Pitt action comedy is a much safer bet than an Oscar hopeful like Killers Of The Flower Moon. As IndieWire’s David Ehrlich pointed out, “the last time Clooney and Pitt were co-leads in a movie it made $311 million in 2007 money.” Apple could have made a nice little profit putting this one up for a few weeks in theaters; instead the film will hit theaters for just one week starting on September 20 before the movie debuts on the streamer on September 27.

Unfortunately, theatrical just isn’t a priority for streaming services. Apple is actually one of the streamers that’s been a little more amenable to theatrical releases (as opposed to Netflix, where it’s basically a non-starter), but Apple also reportedly doesn’t really care about actually turning a profit on its productions. As that Bloomberg report noted, “Apple invests in entertainment to sell more consumer devices—not to make money in Hollywood.” In this case, the way to drive people to their devices (and subscription services) is to make a buzzy movie exclusively available on its streaming platform. Sad, but that’s the streaming era for you. 

On top of that, if you do like Wolfs, you’ll hopefully be enticed to keep paying for Apple TV+ at least until the sequel arrives. “Wolfs is the kind of big event movie that makes Apple TV+ such an exceptional home for the best in entertainment,” Apple Original Films’ head of features Matt Dentler said in a statement (via Variety). “With George and Brad’s remarkable and engaging chemistry under Jon Watts’ extraordinary direction, Wolfs blends all the great elements of comedy, action, and drama into a hugely entertaining movie that will leave audiences ready for what’s next. Releasing the movie to theaters before making it widely available to Apple TV+ customers brings the best of both worlds to audiences, and we’re excited to see fans embrace the movie as we start working with Jon on the sequel.”