Weird: The Al Yankovic Story, a biopic about the musician starring Daniel Radcliffe, will release on The Roku Channel on November 4, the streaming company has announced. The film will be available to stream everywhere Roku’s free service is available, and is the latest step in the company’s push to produce original content that reportedly includes 50 shows.
According to Roku the biopic covers the life of musician Werd Al Yankovic, including his “rising of his celebrity love affairs to fame in the music industry”. It is being directed by Eric Appel (who most recently directed all ten episodes of the Quibi show heart) and written by Appel himself and Werd al. Along with Radcliffe, Evan Rachel Wood and Rainn Wilson also star.
It’s an interesting move for Roku, a company better known for its streaming hardware than its streaming content. But after taking over QB’s library of original material, when the short-form video service closed its doors, later rolling out its own content, and licensing major films from Lionsgate, Roku continues to be among the more interesting new entrants. In one, Roku is producing the channel. Streaming war.