Director Discusses Apex's Shift From Theatrical To Netflix Release

2 hours ago 4

Charlize Theron climbing a mountain in Apex

Published Apr 23, 2026, 5:30 PM EDT

While Apex is headed to Netflix tomorrow, its director originally had plans for it to debut on the big screen.

In an interview with ScreenRant's Liam Crowley, director Baltasar Kormákur revealed Apex's theatrical release plans and why the survival thriller ultimately ended up on the streamer.

Baltasar Kormákur: That's not the model they [Netflix] work on, but I've seen it, and we screened it on the [big screen]. Luckily, a lot of people have big TVs or big screens that they actually can experience some of that. But yeah, I approach it the same way. I'm making a film, however it's screened. A lot of films are also just seen in that space. More people end up seeing them in all kinds of formats.

Kormákur also said that skipping out on a theatrical release forced him to let go of what's "not in my control" as he remains hopeful that audiences can experience the film's grandeur, no matter the size of the screen or how they watch it.

Baltasar Kormákur: I have to let go of what's not in my control, but of course, that is a thing. I think people who see it, they experience it still in a strong way on the limited-sized screen. I just stay closer to the screen (laughs). It's about preparation. Put some good headphones on, and that's the closest you can get to it.

The aforementioned locations that made the filming so spectacular weren't exactly the easiest places to shoot, however, with Kormákur telling ScreenRant that his love of extremes played a big part in going from the Nordic snow to Australia's Blue Mountains.

Baltasar Kormákur: One of the reasons why I would take this on is because it was possible to do what we then did: to make this a raw, visceral experience, through the nature that we went through. So that was absolutely an essential part of it.

It's like a marathon. You just have to keep on going. And maybe you have to slow down a little bit and then pick up the pace, but you cannot stop... So you can't go like, 'Oh, you should take a break because you're so tired.' No, no, no, no. When they get tired, that's when the interesting things start happening. When the Hollywood glee is off their faces, and they're just real human beings and striving to get through this, that's really when it starts to get interesting.

Apex joins a host of new Netflix thrillers apt for the big screen, including the recently released Thrash, 180, The Rip, and more.

Apex premieres April 24th on Netflix.