Why Martin Scorsese's 'The Irishman' is so important to Netflix

Netflix has made expensive quasi-blockbusters like "Bright," acclaimed Oscar fare such as "Roma" and a multitude of romantic comedies and Christmas movies. But the streaming giant has never released anything quite like "The Irishman," a 3 1/2-hour, $159-million crime epic from one of the lions of cinema, Martin Scorsese.

Opening in select theaters in Los Angeles and New York on Friday, the sprawling drama marks the highest profile film debut yet for the streaming giant, which has made movies a key part of its streaming business after years of disrupting the television industry.

For Netflix film chief Scott Stuber, who joined the firm more than two years ago, the Scorsese picture is part of a mission to prove that the streamer - widely seen as an outsider and, by some, an enemy of traditional Hollywood - can make movies that stand up among