FilmStruck, Turner’s streaming service for movies, is partnering with Warner Bros. Digital Networks (WBDN) and adding some new features that will expand its film library to some Hollywood classics. As part of the venture, Warner Archive will sunset its service effective immediately, with current subscribers being transitioned to a FilmStruck subscription.

Beginning today, FilmStruck subscribers in the US will get hundreds of new movies and streaming access to films from the Warner Bros. classic film library, including Casablanca, Rebel Without a Cause, Singin’ In the Rain, Citizen Kane, The Music Man, Bringing Up Baby, The Thin Man, Cat People, A Night At The Opera, An American In Paris, and Who’s Afraid Of Virginia Woolf?

The addition of the Warner Bros films will spawn two new segments: TCM Select, a new featured collection offering iconic films from the Golden Age of Hollywood supplemented with introductions from TCM host Ben Mankiewicz and featuring rare archival content and bonus materials; and curated themes around classic Hollywood, including Rogers & Astaire: The Complete Collection; Neo-Noir; and a Star of the Week theme featuring Bette Davis, Hepburn & Tracy and Ava Gardner, among others.

FilmStruck will continue to offer US subscribers a streaming library of contemporary and classic arthouse, indie, foreign and cult films, including access to the Criterion Collection of classic films, as well as films from such indie studios as Janus Films, Flicker Alley, Icarus Films, Kino, Milestone, Zeitgeist, Film Movement, Global Lens, First Run Features, Oscilloscope Laboratories and Shout Factory, along with movies from Hollywood’s major movie studios, including Lionsgate, Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM), Paramount, Sony, Universal and Warner Bros.

Subscriptions to FilmStruck are available in three different pricing tiers, starting at $6.99 per month. The service is available to stream on Roku, Google Chromecast, Apple TV 4th generation devices, Amazon Fire TV, web, iOS and Android devices. FilmStruck can be accessed via the Apple App store, as well as online and via Google Play for Android users.

Date: November 12, 2018 at 8:44:29 PM PST
To: Toby Emmerich

Subject: FilmStruck

Dear Toby,

We know that Steven Spielberg and Martin Scorsese have been in touch with you and Warners Media Group about the demise of FilmStruck and have urged you guys to keep it going.

While it was not your decision, we would like to loudly echo their sentiments. The FilmStruck service was (IS) the best streaming service for fans of cinema of all kinds: classic studio movies, independent cinema, international treasures. Without it, the landscape for film fans and students of cinema is especially bleak. There’s a reason there was a huge outpouring from artists and fans over it being shuttered, they were doing the Movie God’s work.

We know one of the reasons that it has been shut down is because of an upcoming Warners streaming service, but really FilmStruck shouldn’t be a conflict of interest. In this day and age where there are dozens of platforms, curation of content is really important and FilmStruck was providing a service to both satisfy older fans of cinema and a younger generation of cineastes that will be making amazing movies long after we’re dead.

In an era of huge corporate acquisitions of cinema by communication companies- in a business that may render billions of dollars off a medium like cinema, we believe this is a gesture that is needed- a minuscule show of goodwill towards the preservation and accesibility of a tradition and a rich history that would benefit the public.

So we want to add our names to the petition started by Marty and Steven and want you (and Warners) to know that we feel equally strongly and would do anything to support the service being saved.

Yours,

Paul Thomas Anderson
Ana Lily Amirpour
James Brolin
Damien Chazelle
Alfonso Cuarón
Guillermo Del Toro
Leonardo DiCaprio
James Gray
Alejandro González Iñárritu
Bill Hader
Karyn Kusama
Barry Jenkins
Rian Johnson
Christopher McQuarrie
Reed Morano
Christopher Nolan and Emma Thomas
Gina Prince-Bythewood
Barbra Streisand
Edgar Wright