Where can I watch "Land" in Canada?

Joshua Gorner -

Land, the 2021 dramatic film starring and directed by Robin Wright, was released in North America on February 12, 2021, by Focus Features, the art-house division of Universal Pictures.

In both Canada and the United States, the film is initially available only in theatres, even though (particularly in Canada) cinemas were closed in most areas on its release date. However, it is now scheduled to receive a premium video-on-demand (PVOD) release on Friday, March 5. This can now be confirmed on Universal Pictures Canada's microsite for the film.

Platforms on which the film is set to be released for "Home Premiere" on-demand or digital rental include:

  • Apple TV / iTunes Store
  • Cineplex Store
  • Google Play TV & Movies
  • Microsoft Store
  • TV provider on-demand services (via set-top box) including Bell, Cogeco, Rogers, Shaw and Telus

The rental price has not yet been announced but is likely to be around $24.99, consistent with other recent Universal PVOD releases in Canada.

We anticipated this release in advance, because of agreements announced in the latter part of 2020 between Universal and several of the major North American cinema chains, including AMC in the U.S., and Cineplex in Canada. Under these agreements, Universal can release movies to PVOD as early as 17 days after a theatrical release (i.e., after three weekends for a typical Friday release), unless a release has more than US$50 million gross ticket sales at the "domestic" (North American) box office during its first weekend (which was not the case for Land) in which case the window must be at least 31 days.

Although Universal was not obligated to release films on PVOD after exclusivity expires, this has happened quickly for virtually all Universal / Focus films released since these agreements came into effect. For example, Universal's News of the World and Focus' Promising Young Woman, both released in theatres on December 25, arrived on PVOD three weeks later, on January 15.

When will "Land" be available on a streaming service in Canada?

It should be available eventually, but not immediately. The availability of Land on subscription streaming services should follow the typical availability or "windowing" pattern for Universal and Focus releases in Canada.

That would mean – assuming the contracts currently in effect stay in place, which at this stage is not guaranteed – it will be available on Crave (with Movies + HBO), which holds the first pay/streaming window for Universal releases in Canada, likely starting in November or December 2021. A little over a year later (by early 2023), the film would likely move to Netflix, which currently holds Universal's second pay window in Canada.

We provided a more detailed of how this has worked with other recent Universal movies in our recent post about News of the World.

Wait, isn't this the new film with Frances McDormand?

Nope, that's a different movie about a woman's outdoor explorations, which is called Nomadland. That movie is scheduled to be released in Canadian theatres starting in mid-March, and streaming on Disney+ on April 9, as we explain here.