Zach Cregger’s Next Movie Reportedly Stalled After Netflix Balks at Theatrical Release

Zach Cregger had a clean one-two punch lined up: finish Resident Evil for Sony, then roll into his original sci-fi movie The Flood at Netflix. Instead, The Flood just slammed into Netflix’s no-theatrical wall and is now hovering in that fun place between paused and maybe-still-happening.

What The Flood is and how it got complicated

The Flood is Cregger’s sci-fi follow-up that he wrote after Weapons. He moved it forward with Amblin and Netflix because the streamer, per TheWrap, promised to put it in theaters before it hit the app. That promise apparently came straight from Netflix Films chairman Dan Lin, who flew to Prague in summer 2025 to meet Cregger while he was prepping Resident Evil for Sony. The theatrical commitment was reportedly made there.

Cut to later: Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos shut the door on a theatrical release for The Flood. Cregger still wants the movie on big screens, so now the project is… stuck. One person close to the situation told TheWrap:

'The real question is whether Netflix backs down or they let Cregger take it out [to a different studio] because Zach remains committed to a theatrical release.'

Another source pushed back, saying the film is not stalled, calling it 'active development' with talks 'still ongoing.' So yes, even the people involved do not agree on the status. Either way, the sticking point is crystal clear: theaters or no theaters.

Netflix’s stance, with a couple of eyebrow-raising exceptions

This dust-up arrives just a few weeks after Sarandos used Netflix’s third-quarter earnings call to underline, again, that the company’s plan is unchanged: even with KPop Demon Hunter performing theatrically, Netflix’s strategy is to keep first-run movies exclusive to Netflix. That said, they do make exceptions when it suits them. Guillermo del Toro’s Frankenstein got a theatrical-first rollout in October, and the Stranger Things season 5 finale is set to hit movie screens on New Year’s Day 2026 before it streams.

• After Weapons, Cregger wrote The Flood and set it up with Amblin and Netflix on the promise of a theatrical run.
• Summer 2025: Netflix Films chief Dan Lin met Cregger in Prague, where that theatrical commitment was made.
• Later, Ted Sarandos said no to a theatrical release for The Flood.
• Outcome: One side calls the project stalled, another says it is still in active development with talks ongoing.
• Context: Netflix just reiterated its streaming-first plan on the Q3 call, even as it occasionally launches select titles in theaters first (Frankenstein in October, Stranger Things S5 finale on Jan 1, 2026).

Where this leaves Cregger

He is in demand. Weapons landed raves this summer and pulled in over 267 million dollars worldwide, according to Box Office Mojo. Next on deck for him is Resident Evil, his spin on the game franchise for Sony, with Austin Abrams starring. The Flood was supposed to be the Netflix follow-up after that; now it is in limbo unless Netflix budges or another studio steps in.

Bottom line: Cregger wants a big-screen bow, Netflix wants your couch. Someone is going to blink, or The Flood will find a new home.