San Francisco, Sep 28 (IANS): Users might not need an Apple TV Plus subscription to watch few of the iPhone maker's upcoming original films as the company was expected to reportedly roll out its original movies in select theatres, weeks before they were scheduled to arrive on the forthcoming streaming service.

With the help of three boutique distribution companies, Apple would be taking titles including Anthony Mackie's "The Banker", Minhal Baig's "Hala" and the buzzy wildlife documentary "The Elephant Queen" into selected American cities before the titles were uploaded to Apple TV Plus, Variety reported on Friday.

The tech giant was following a strategy similar to Amazon's which gave the Oscar-winning "Manchester by the Sea" a three-month theatrical run in 2016.

Apple's decision to give films proper theatrical releases comes at a time when its rival Netflix was going head-to-head with major theatre distributors such as Regal and AMC.

Tim Cook's shop has also made contact with NATO, the trade group representing major chains like AMC Theaters and Regal Cinemas, to express their desire for a productive and fruitful relationship, the report added.