How Matt Damon and Ben Affleck Changed Netflix With 'The Rip'
Matt Damon and Ben Affleck prompted Netflix to change its model for the first time with their new action flick, The Rip, due Jan. 16 on the streaming service. But, as always, there’s a twist.
Affleck and Damon Upend Netflix's Payment Structure
For the first time in Netflix’s history, the streaming service will pay out performance-based bonuses to the cast and crew of The Rip. Affleck and Damon negotiated the deal through their company, Artists Equity. It’s the first time that Netflix has agreed to pay out back-end fees to its cast and crew. Historically, the streaming service has only paid its actors and crew members upfront salaries determined before the project begins production. This is directly oppositional to major studios such as Warner Bros. and Paramount, which pay talent upfront salaries in addition to performance-based incentives based on box office numbers.
But There's a Catch...
According to NYT, all 1,200 people involved in The Rip’s production stand to earn a one-time bonus if Joe Carnahan’s $100-million picture meets performance expectations. To determine whether or not the bonuses will be paid out, Netflix will evaluate The Rip’s viewership over its first 90 days on Netflix and measure it against other titles on the platform.
“We wanted to institute fairness and address some of the real issues that are present and urgent for our business,” Affleck told The New York Times. “This deal is fundamental, philosophically, to the ideas we had in starting this company.” Affleck and Damon established Artists Equity in 2022. “Everybody who’s in this movie, from top to bottom, or worked on the crew, will be bonused according to metrics which we’ve already defined and they’ve shared with us,” added Affleck, without specifying the metrics.
Warrick Page/Netflix
Ted Sarandos Reportedly Supported Decision
Perhaps surprisingly, given Netflix’s bonus-averse history, Affleck claimed that Ted Sarandos was supportive of the actors’ initiative. “I thought this is clearly somebody who cares about this business, wants it to work, is doing very well and understands the value of filmmakers and performers and artists,” he said.
The Rip follows a group of Miami cops who encounter violence and corruption after finding and trying to steal a bag of stolen money. Affleck and Damon lead the cast alongside Steven Yuen (Mayhem); Sasha Calle (The Flash); Scott Adkins (John Wick: Chapter 4); and Teyana Taylor, who recently won a Golden Globe for her scene-stealing turn in Paul Thomas Anderson’s Oscar-favorite One Battle After Another. It’s directed by Joe Carnahan, who previously helmed Smokin’ Aces (2007), The A-Team (2010), and Boss Level (2020).