Paramount and Netflix are reportedly in negotiations to make Annihilation available for streaming internationally shortly after its February 23 release in the United States.
According to Deadline, the deal would give Netflix the international rights to stream Ex Machina director Alex Garland's sci-fi film a mere 17 days after its debut in the US.
The film will get a traditional theatrical release in the United States, Canada, and China by Paramount.
This deal is similar to the one Netflix made with New Line for its Shaft reboot, with the streaming service covering over half of the film’s $30 million budget for the rights to stream the film outside of the US just two weeks after it opens in theaters. Garland's upcoming sci-fi thriller is said the be the next movie to test this approach.
Annihilation is based on the first book in Jeff VanderMeer’s bestselling Southern Reach trilogy, and stars Natalie Portman, Oscar Isaac, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Gina Rodriguez, and Tessa Thompson.
For more on Garland's work, read IGN's review of Ex Machina.
Alex Osborn is a freelance writer for IGN. Find him on Twitter at @alexcosborn.