David Cronenberg Says “Conservative” Netflix Passed on His New Movie

Director David Cronenberg is lamenting Netflix‘s “conservative” approach to filmmaking. The director spoke to Variety ahead of the release of his latest film, Crimes of the Future, which he said the streamer passed on.

Cronenberg, who told Variety it was difficult to finance his film despite its all-star cast (which features Viggo Mortensen, Kristen Stewart and Lea Seydoux), said filmmakers “don’t have to worry about money” if they are working with a streamer like Netflix — but he said he was unable to strike a deal with the company.

“I’m pretty sure we did talk to Amazon and Netflix for this, and it was not a project they wanted to do. And I think my feeling is I really was very interested in the whole Netflix streaming phenomenon, definitely,” he told Variety. “But I think that they’re still very conservative. I mean, I think they’re still like a Hollywood studio. I thought maybe they would be different.”

He continued, “The difference is that Netflix can show very interesting streaming series from Korea, from Finland, and they say it’s a Netflix original, but it isn’t really — it’s something they have acquired. But I think when it comes to their actual production that they do themselves, they’re very conservative. I think they think in mainstream terms, that’s my experience with them anyway.”

Cronenberg also reflected on his brief experience creating a Netflix series, which never moved beyond the first two episodes at the streamer because they “decided not to do it.” He explained, “I was disappointed because I was interested in streaming in cinematic terms. I thought that would be a very interesting experience for me as a writer, as a creator, and then also as a director.”

As for why the streamer decided not to move forward with his series, Cronenberg told Variety, “It turns out that it’s not so easy to get a series with Netflix. In fact, it seems that it might be easier to get an independent film made if it’s of a certain type. I’d say maybe a film that isn’t the conservative kind of movie as Netflix would like.”

Decider has reached out to Netflix for comment.

Cronenberg’s latest film won’t debut on streaming, but will premiere in theaters June 3.