Where can I watch “Those Who Wish Me Dead” in Canada?

The 2021 thriller Those Who Wish Me Dead, starring Angelina Jolie, directed by Taylor Sheridan, and based on the novel of the same name written by Michael Koryta, was released in North American theatres on Friday, May 14, 2021, by Warner Bros. Pictures through its New Line Cinema label.

In light of the ongoing closures of cinemas in most parts of Canada during the coronavirus pandemic, Warner Bros. Canada has confirmed on its website that Those Who Wish Me Dead will be available both in movie theatres, where permitted to open (including in Saskatchewan, Quebec and parts of Atlantic Canada), and as a premium video-on-demand (PVOD) rental. The digital rental initially retailed for about $24.99 plus tax through most retailers for a 48-hour rental.

Subsequently, the film became available to stream via Crave + Movies + HBO, as of October 8, 2021.

Those Who Wish Me Dead remains available to rent or purchase digitally in Canada through the following retailers, with no subscription required to be able to do so.

• Amazon Prime Video Store
   
• Apple TV / iTunes Store
   
• Cineplex Store
   
• Google Play Movies & TV
   
• Microsoft Movies & TV
   
• YouTube Movies

In addition, if you subscribe to a cable or similar TV service provider, the film should be available to rent for a similar price through most video-on-demand services (on your set-top box), via providers including Bell, Rogers, Cogeco, SaskTel, Shaw, Telus, and Vidéotron.

PVOD, also known by names like "premium rental" or "Home Premiere", is a relatively new model for the home entertainment industry that allows consumers to watch new-release movies from home at the same time as, or very shortly after, they're released in theatres. Because it's only possible to charge per household, not per viewer (i.e., per seat as with a regular theatre), these rental prices are set quite high to start, comparable to two adult movie tickets. However, in most cases, they've come down to "regular" VOD prices within a few months.

I'm seeing ads promoting this movie on HBO Max. Can't I watch it there, or on Crave in Canada?

In the U.S., Those Who Wish Me Dead was part of Warner Bros.' "Same Day Premieres" distribution model for late 2020 and 2021 releases which began with Wonder Woman 1984, in which WB theatrical films will have a day-and-date release on co-owned streaming service HBO Max, and will be available for streaming for no extra charge to subscribers on that service for 31 days after release.

However, this initial streaming release was exclusive to the United States, at the decision of WarnerMedia. It did not apply in Canada, or in most of the rest of the world for that matter, where HBO Max is not available. Even in other countries where HBO Max will be available in the coming months, such as Latin America and parts of Europe, there has been no indication yet that TWWMD or other Warner Bros. films will be avaialble immediately in those markets. We've discussed this further in other recent posts, like our post about Wonder Woman 1984.

The HBO Max original movies that have been released simultaneously on Crave (and HBO Latin America and the like), like Locked Down, are there because because Warner Bros. chose not to release these movies in theatres at all, at least in the Americas.

That said, as with other Warner Bros. / New Line releases, TWWMD is covered by a "pay-1" output deal that sends the studio's first-run films to Crave (with Movies + HBO, i.e. the version of Crave that costs about $20 per month), several months after their theatrical runs. As noted above, it became available on Crave on October 9.

Significant revisions

• October 16, 2021: updated streaming availability