Could Letterboxd be on the cusp of setting a new film canon with movie rentals?
The impact of movie catalog app Letterboxd is already broadly felt on film culture. For example, I don’t think it is a stretch to suggest that the prominence of A24 has a pretty strong connection to the youthy cineaste culture of Letterboxd.
This Wednesday Dec 10, Letterboxd unveils its movie rental store, branded as Video Store. Some online video rental stores (or as the cool kids call it: TVOD… ‘transactional video on demand’) allow users to create watchlists, but that is commerce orientated. Letterboxd is culture and film fanaticism-first, but will also have the functionality to let users take the next step and access those movies they are interested in seeing.
Movies will be priced (in the US) between $3.99 to $19.99. The rented films can then be watched via Apple TV 4K, Apple AirPlay and Google Chromecast, as well as on the web and iOS and Android mobile devices.
It launches in 23 countries: U.S., Canada, U.K., Ireland, France, Spain, Australia, New Zealand, Germany, Austria, Italy, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Belgium, Switzerland, Greece and Cyprus.
But here’s what I find especially interesting: When the store launches, it will only carry nine titles. The service will always have two shelves of content, each themed and will run for around a month.
As per Variety, the first wave of films are:
Unreleased Gems:
It Ends (2025): Director Alexander Ullom’s directorial debut about recent college grads trapped on an infinite, nightmarish backroad made waves when it premiered at SXSW 2025, going on to win best first feature at Fantasia International Film Festival and the narrative feature grand jury award at the Atlanta Film Festival.
Sore: A Wife From the Future (2025) – Director Yandy Laurens’ inventive time-loop sci-fi romance about a woman who travels back in time to change her husband’s destiny received eight nominations at the 2025 Indonesian Film Festival, including best picture, and has been selected as Indonesia’s submission for the best international feature film for the 2026 Academy Awards.
Kennedy (2023) – Anurag Kashyap’s neo-noir thriller following a presumed-dead insomniac ex-cop seeking redemption in Mumbai’s dark streets premiered at Cannes in 2023, going on to screen at over 20 international festivals.
The Mysterious Gaze of the Flamingo (2025) – Director Diego Céspedes’ feature debut about an eleven-year-old girl protecting her town’s queer community from superstitious panic won the Un Certain Regard Prize at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival and has been selected as Chile’s submission for the best international feature film for the upcoming Academy Awards.
Lost & Found:
Tiger on the Beat (1988) – Legendary 1988 action-comedy starring Chow Yun-Fat and directed by Lau Kar-Leung remains a beloved classic of Hong Kong cinema. For most of the world, this is the first opportunity to see the new 4K restoration — a digital exclusive to Letterboxd at launch.
Kisapmata (1981) – Considered one of the greatest Filipino films of all time, Mike de Leon’s masterpiece about a young woman living under her domineering father’s suffocating control won ten awards at the 1981 Metro Manila Film Festival including best film and screened at Cannes. This new 4K restoration premieres digitally, celebrating the late director’s uncompromising vision that faced censorship under the Marcos regime.
It Must Be Heaven (2019) – This comedy won both the special mention from the main competition jury and FIPRESCI Prize at the 2019 Cannes Film Festival, but its theatrical release was delayed for over a year due to the pandemic, limiting its reach despite widespread praise. Palestinian director Elia Suleiman’s distinctive visual satire continues his acclaimed tradition of observational comedy that speaks to universal themes of displacement and belonging.
Poison (1991) – Todd Haynes’ groundbreaking film won the grand jury prize at the 1991 Sundance Film Festival and became a lightning rod in the culture wars, with conservative politicians attempting to defund the NEA over its support. The first feature from future Oscar nominee Haynes established him as a fearless voice in independent cinema.
Before We Vanish (2017) – Based on a cult Japanese stage play, master filmmaker Kiyoshi Kurosawa’s alien invasion story screened in Un Certain Regard at the 2017 Cannes Film Festival, showcasing the acclaimed director’s distinctive take on the genre.
“We’re incredibly proud of what we and our community have built,” Letterboxd CEO and co-founder Matthew Buchanan said in a statement. “We take their lead, and believe that has been integral to Letterboxd’s success. They tell us what’s really happening — a 1980s action film suddenly trending, a festival title from two years ago still being added to watchlists. Video Store lets us act on that real demand, whether it’s helping a distributor unlock value from a forgotten gem in its vault or giving a filmmaker direct access to the audience they’ve been building on our platform.”
I don’t know how many people would ever have seen any of those films. But, with this new monthly curated collection, added to a platform with very high engagement, I can see a scenario where these films start to get discussed fairly broadly by film enthusiasts in a way that just wouldn’t happen otherwise.
If Letterboxd users embrace the Video Store, this is going to dramatically shift the sorts of films that are being talked about and consumed with a new film canon set to emerge. It’s an interesting and exciting shift that will have older generations who aren’t engaged with Letterboxd scratching their heads at some of the films entering the broader discourse.
News Desk
As expected, David Ellison’s Paramount has launched a $108.4 billion hostile offer to wrestle Warner Bros Discovery away from Netflix. Read: THR
Warner Bros Discovery stock jumped 7% on news of the offer. Read: The Wrap
Netflix Co-CEO Ted Sarandos says that Netflix expected this sort of action from Ellison and isn’t phased: “We’re super confident we’re going to get it across the line.” Read: Deadline
Jesse Hassenger argues that Netflix buying Warner Bros is bad news for cinema. And while I don’t necessarily disagree, I’d also suggest that just because Netflix hasn’t found value in putting Netflix movies into cinemas, it doesn’t mean that it doesn’t see value in a business model that placed Warner Bros titles into cinemas. Read: The Guardian
In an effort to win over the hearts and minds of Hollywood, Paramount promises to release 30 films into cinema each year. They didn’t say it, but seven of those every year will be Rush Hour franchise entries. Read: Variety
Aussie soap Home & Away will no longer be available on Channel 5’s daytime schedule. It will still be available during the day by way of 5’s streaming app. Read: Radio Times
Maybe you’re interested in who made a special guest appearance in the final episode of Bel Air, the Fresh Prince of Bel Air reboot show. Read: Deadline
YouTube chief Neal Mohan has been named Time CEO of the Year for 2025. Read: Variety
DJ Central TV, one of the world’s leading dance, club, and EDM television properties, is partnering with FAST Channels TV to launch the official DJ Central TV FAST Channel — a 24/7, ad-supported streaming channel with over 300 + hours of nonstop Electronic Dance Music. Read: Streaming Media Global
Spotify Wrapped drew 250 million engaged users in only 65 hours. Read: Variety
CNN has re-upped its deal with Anderson Cooper. Read: Variety
Trailer Park
The Copenhagen Test debuts on Peacock Dec 27. It stars Simu Liu, Melissa Barrera, Sinclair Daniel, Brian d’Arcy James, Mark O’Brien, and Kathleen Chalfant.
This espionage thriller series follows first-generation Chinese-American intelligence analyst Alexander Hale (Liu) who realizes his brain has been hacked, giving the perpetrators access to everything he sees and hears. Caught between his shadowy agency and the unknown hackers, he must maintain a performance 24/7 to flush out who’s responsible and prove where his allegiance lies.
That’s the newsletter for the second time today.
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