Image: Netflix
Cameron Diaz is set to star alongside Jamie Foxx in a new Netflix original film, officially ending Diazâs retirement (which some of us at The Verge apparently never got the memo on). Foxx teased the new film, titled Back in Action, in a tweet containing an audio call between him, Diaz, and Tom Brady, whose retirement from football notably lasted a whole 40 days.
In a press release, Netflix doesnât reveal much about the upcoming film other than that itâs an action-comedy directed, produced, and written by Seth Gordon, the director behind Horrible Bosses. Beau Bauman of Central Intelligence will serve as a producer, and Neighborsâ Brendan OâBrien is helping out with the script. Netflix says the premise of the film will remain âunder wrapsâ and that production will begin later this year. Diaz last appeared in the 2014 remake of Annie, in which Foxx also starred. The pair previously had roles in the 1999 sports drama Any Given Sunday.
Cameron Diaz is officially un-retiring!!
She will star with Jamie Foxx in a new Netflix movie â and we have an unexpected person to thank for getting her back in action⌠https://t.co/BciMJs5bGo
â Netflix (@netflix) June 29, 2022
While Netflix currently has 74.58 million subscribers in the US and Canada and about 222 million worldwide, the platform reported losing subscribers in the first quarter of 2022. In May, a survey revealed that more long-term subscribers were quitting Netflix, with 3.6 million people unsubscribing from the platform last quarter.
As Netflix looks to lure in new subscribers (and keep its existing ones locked in), a film with names as big as Diaz and Foxx could help do that. Netflixâs Project Power, which also stars Jamie Foxx, managed to rake in 75 million viewers upon release in 2020. Last year, Netflix released Red Notice with Dwayne Johnson, Gal Gadot, and Ryan Reynolds and also has The Gray Man coming out next month, starring Chris Evans and Ryan Gosling.
Outside of bolstering its content, Netflix plans on rolling out a cheaper, ad-supported tier later this year to counter some of its recent rate hikes. Itâs testing ways to crack down on password sharing in select countries, and itâs also exploring livestreams.