Nicolas Cage and Christian Bale’s John Madden biopic Madden is coming to streaming in November, but whether the film will get a theatrical release is a question that has yet to be answered.

Madden, of course, is the legendary Super Bowl-winning Oakland Raiders coach-turned-NFL broadcaster. Directed by David O. Russell, Madden stars Cage in the title role while Bale plays Raiders owner Al Davis.

Cage announced in a YouTube video on Thursday that Madden, which is an Amazon MGM Studios production, will be released on Prime Video on Wednesday, Nov. 18. Per the streaming service, Madden tracks the coach’s Super Bowl-winning partnership with Davis, his career as a TV analyst and the rise of the iconic Madden NFL video game.

“Accepting the role to play this larger-than-life legend has been a highlight for me,” Cage said in the Madden announcement video (embedded below). “John Madden didn’t just coach football. He changed the game.”

The announcement video also includes clips from the film, highlighting Madden’s football and broadcasting career, including an exchange between the coach and Davis.

“His humanity was present in everything he did, including his unwavering love of family and his lifelong partnership with best friend Al Davis,” Cage said in the video. “John’s passion, joy and the impact he had through his zest for life and humanity were immense.”

Madden also stars John Mulaney as EA Sports founder Trip Hawkins, Kathryn Hahn as Madden’s wife, Virginia, Sienna Miller as Davis’ wife, Carol, and Shane Gillis in an unspecified role.

‘Madden’ Could Still Qualify For An Oscar Run

While the debut of Madden has been set for a Prime Video debut, Amazon MGM Studios made no mention in its announcement of whether the film will be released in theaters.

Given the high-profile talent involved in Madden, it would be unusual for Amazon MGM to not make an awards season run, which of course concludes with the Oscars. Both Nicolas Cage and Christian Bale are Oscar winners (for Leaving Las Vegas and The Fighter, respectively), and David O. Russell has been nominated for three Best Directing Oscars (for Silver Linings Playbook, American Hustle and The Fighter) and two screenplay Oscars.

On top of that, Silver Linings Playbook, American Hustle and The Fighter were all nominated for multiple Oscars, including Best Picture.

As such, while a conventional theatrical run is apparently not in play — at least not yet — for Madden, the film in all likelihood will receive an awards season qualifying run before it begins streaming on Prime Video.

Per the rules of the Academy Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, any film vying for the 99th Annual Oscars must play for seven consecutive days in “one of six qualifying U.S. metro areas: Los Angeles County; City of New York [five boroughs]; the Bay Area [counties of San Francisco, Marin, Alameda, San Mateo and Contra Costa]; Chicago [Cook County, Illinois]; Dallas-Fort Worth [Dallas County and Tarrant County, Texas]; and Atlanta [Fulton County, Georgia].”

Of course, vying for awards season recognition isn’t anything new for streaming platforms, as the likes of Apple TV, Netflix and Prime Video have had films nominated in the past. While most of the streamers’ submissions opt for the minimum qualifying run, occasionally platforms like Netflix will offer larger runs for movie fans who prefer the big-screen experience.

The most recent example of that came in 2025 when Netflix released writer-director Guillermo del Toro’s Frankenstein in theaters nationwide for three weeks before it began streaming on the platform. Frankenstein went on to earn nine Oscar nominations, including Best Picture, and won four in the craft categories.

Madden will begin streaming on Prime Video on Nov. 18.