Just under a month after it hit theaters, Sydney Sweeney’s horror film Immaculate debuted on digital platforms in mid-April, though some think it’s too dark… literally.
The film opened to $5.3 million in March, just a week after its premiere at SXSW in Austin, earning strong reviews from critics, though it left some actually vomiting in theaters since it was so disturbing.
The word-of-mouth and strong critical reception helped little at the box office, earning just $23.8 million worldwide, though from just a $9 million budget.
After its digital release on various video-on-demand (VOD) and streaming platforms, some started to notice how much darker the film is when transitioned from the film negative to digital formats.
Director Michael Mohan addressed these concerns in a recent tweet, insisting that the much-darker transfer was not intentional.
Just under a month after it hit theaters, Sydney Sweeney ‘s horror film Immaculate debuted on digital platforms in mid-April, though some think it’s too dark… literally
After its digital release on various video-on-demand (VOD) and streaming platforms, some started to notice how much darker the film is when transitioned from the film negative to digital formats
Director Michael Mohan addressed these concerns in a recent tweet, insisting that the much-darker transfer was not intentional
The filmmaker responded to a tweet sent by @Sgtzima, which included some of the very-dark frames from the streaming transfer he watched.
‘IMMACULATE is comically dark. I’m watching it in a dimly lit room in the evening and can barely make out what’s happening on screen. Why would anybody do this intentionally?’ the X user wrote.
Mahon quote-tweeted the tweet and responded, ‘I know, man. This was absolutely not done intentionally.’
‘We have no control over the compression specs of each platform. It’s a real problem that truly bums me out,’ he added.
The director also gave fans a tip for what platform is the least dark among the many digital offerings.
‘After comparing them all, iTunes is the closest to what we wanted / brighter than the rest,’ Mahon admitted.
However, @Sgtzima replied, ‘I was actually watching it on iTunes in Dolby Vision. I’m not sure what happened here.’
The film was released for purchase and rental on digital formats starting April 16, with the Blu-ray and DVD release to follow on June 11.
‘IMMACULATE is comically dark. I’m watching it in a dimly lit room in the evening and can barely make out what’s happening on screen. Why would anybody do this intentionally?’ the X user wrote
The director also gave fans a tip for what platform is the least dark among the many digital offerings
‘After comparing them all, iTunes is the closest to what we wanted / brighter than the rest,’ Mahon admitted
He responded, ‘I wasn’t involved with that release aside from recording a commentary track in my hotel room at SXSW before the premiere. They love the film and do great work, so I can only imagine it’s fantastic.’
Mahon was also asked about the, ‘4k transfer from Capelight Pictures,’ and if it was, ‘approved by you or at least close to how you wanted it to be?’
He responded, ‘I wasn’t involved with that release aside from recording a commentary track in my hotel room at SXSW before the premiere. They love the film and do great work, so I can only imagine it’s fantastic.’
Other fans responded that the film looked great in theaters, including @elguapo1, who said, ‘Looked fine to me when I saw it in theaters. So far, still my fav horror movie of 2024.’
Sydney Sweeney stars in Immaculate as the devout Cecilia, who is offered a position at an illustrious Italian convent… though she soon learns the dark secrets it harbors.
