Netflix Is Axing a Ton of Beloved Movies in December
Many movies are leaving Netflix next month, including a huge batch of classics on New Year's Eve.
Netflix is constantly adding and removing movies and TV shows on its platform, but December will be a particularly tough month for removals. Some of the most beloved films available on Netflix right now will be departing in December, as you can see on the full list here. Read on for some of the highlights and last-minute movie nights you may want to plan for.
Netflix will be adding new titles nearly every day in December, but they won't start removing titles until the middle of the month. The first movie to go will be Sing 2 on Thursday, Dec. 21, so those with children may want to catch it when they can. After that, all of the streamer's Kath & Kim content will be leaving on Dec. 27 including the movies Da Kath & Kim Code and Kath & Kimderella. Dec. 30 brings two really heartbreaking cuts – the Taylor Swift Reputation Stadium Tour film and the 2019 horror movie Us.
Sadly, the real heartbreak is all packed into one day on Dec. 31 as Netflix's licensing agreements end and movies drop like flies. That includes several entire franchises, including all four Jaws movies and the first four Mission: Impossible movies all in one shot. We're also losing Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy and Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues, as well as Crank and Crank 2: High Voltage.
Arguably more tragic are the movies leaving with the rest of their franchise intact. For example, Kung Fu Panda is departing Netflix at the end of the year, but the streamer will still have other movies in the franchise not to mention a Netflix original series that isn't likely to go anywhere. The platform is also losing Casper, though after that at least the movies leaving aren't children's movies, sparing some tantrums in many households.
Film buffs might be sad to see some acclaimed classics leaving, including American Beauty, Saving Private Ryan and Scarface. Two Leonardo DiCaprio movies will be gone that day as well – Catch Me If You Can and The Wolf of Wall Street. The unlikely Oscar winner 8 Mile is leaving Netflix that day along with the heartbreaking Field of Dreams.
Finally, the last batch of movies leaving Netflix are comedies, including rom-coms Lost in Translation, Love Actually, and Runaway Bride. The last one is Role Models – a 2008 comedy starring Paul Rudd, Sean William Scott, Christopher Mintz-Plasse and Elizabeth Banks.
As always, these movies may return to Netflix someday or may become available on another streamer that you have access to. Most are also available on DVD or Blu-ray, and a collection of your absolute favorites can protect you from these kinds of licensing agreement changes. In the meantime, be sure to stream the movies you love on this list sometime in the next few weeks before they leave Netflix in late December.