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Within hours of the deal being announced, Jane Fonda and the Committee for the 1st Amendment called Netflix’s acquisition of Warner Bros. a threat to “the entire entertainment industry.” Some thought she was being hyperbolic, or not considering how much worse the merger would be if Paramount Skydance had won, given that studio is owned by the Trump-friendly Ellisons (one might even call them the “proud arm of the fascist regime”). It’s true, if Paramount Skydance succeeds with their hostile takeover bid for WB, it will be catastrophic on so many levels. And it’s bad that Netflix is (as of now) buying WB. Because ALL of these mergers are killing the entertainment industry! Jane was making this point before the Netflix-WB deal was announced last Friday — that it’s not about which studios merge so much as the fact of the mergers themselves — and since then movie theater owners are continuing to sound the alarm. From The Hollywood Reporter:
Sarandos swears nothing will change! “We have not talked a lot about in the past about wanting to do theatrical, because we’ve never been in that business. When this deal closes, we be will in [sic], and we’re going to do it,” said Sarandos, indicating that all of the studio’s box office this year, including A Minecraft Movie, Weapons and Sinners, wouldn’t have driven the same value without a proper release, with the implication being a robust marketing spend, something Netflix is loathe to do for its fare. “We didn’t buy this company to destroy that value,” he concluded.
The Fox-Disney merger, pandemic, & 2023 strikes all hurt moviegoing: Box office experts say 15 to 20 percent of regular moviegoers have simply never returned, reflected in the fact that domestic box office revenue in the post-pandemic era has barely cracked $9 billion in any given year, compared to $11 billion prior to COVID. This year, revenue is expected to come in on par with last year’s $8.8 billion.
A tipping point for the industry: “Further consolidation in the industry, no matter who is bringing studios together, is a real threat and potentially existential threat to cinemas,” Mike Bowers, who runs Harkins Theatres and is chairman of Cinema United’s executive board. “And I would say beyond that, it’s not just to cinemas, it’s to the whole ecosystem. I think there’s a misunderstanding. That’s not the way the industry works. We have fixed costs. You reach a tipping point there where it doesn’t just continue to get smaller, it crumbles. And at that point you don’t have an ecosystem that can support it.”
Cinema United, the theater owners’ trade org, responds: Several sources tell THR that opinion within the group was divided during the Fox-Disney merger, so there were no public statements. That wasn’t the case this time. Cinema United CEO Michael O’Leary issued a terse warning saying the proposed acquisition by Netflix “poses an unprecedented threat to the global exhibition business.” Continuing he said, “Cinema United stands ready to support industry changes that lead to increased movie production and give consumers more opportunities to enjoy a day at the local theatre. But Netflix’s stated business model does not support theatrical exhibition. In fact, it is the opposite. Regulators must look closely at the specifics of this proposed transaction and understand the negative impact it will have on consumers, exhibition and the entertainment industry.”
Consolidation leads to fewer films in theaters: In 2016, Disney and 20th Century Fox released 26 new titles in more than 2,000 domestic theaters each. This year, the combined total is 14, a 46 percent decline. The impact of this drop on domestic box office is that 20th Century titles (Fox is no longer part of the title) are projected to gross $900 million less this year than in 2016, a drop of 63 percent.
“We didn’t buy this company to destroy that value.” Geez, put that on a t-shirt, Ted. Or better yet, make it prominent on the home page for the inevitable WB-by-Netflix streaming app where all future WB movies will definitely be relegated to, despite Sarandos’ protestations that WB and Netflix will continue to operate as the two totally separate-minded companies they’ve always been. Yeah, I have no answers. Because the one sound point Sarandos does make, darn him, is that people do want to watch movies from home. But the biggest factor in audiences having that preference (at least for me) is the cost of going to the theater! The comment from a theater owner about this being a tipping point is apt. It seems to me there are two ways forward: these mergers keep happening and the CEOs at the top make billions, creators make far less, and streaming puts theater owners out of commission entirely. OR: the industry actually works to resolve the root of the problem — reckoning with how streaming has changed the business model and figuring out a fair distribution of wealth from there, that includes provisions for supporting theaters. As you can imagine, I’m not holding my breath.
So. WB was going to be bought by either Netflix or paramount. One is liberal and the other is maga.
Isn’t the real issue that WB was selling? What went wrong for them to sell?
Movie theaters aren’t talking about the most important issue. Movie theaters are EXPENSIVE!!!! That is why people watch movies at home. There is some culpability with those movie houses. Not to sound like an old hag, but there used to be double features or movies were affordable where an adult ticket was $6 and a kid ticket was $3. A family could afford to go to the movies. Now, an adult movie ticket is $22 and a child $19. So a family of four is $100 not counting refreshments. Salaries have not kept up with inflation. IJS it’s not just the pandemic and media consolidation.
Yup. I’d love to go to movies more, like I did as a kid in the 90’s, but it’s way too expensive now.
Also audience behavior is feral. So many people are; talking to each other, talking on the phone, scrolling TikTok on full volume, making TikToks, kids screaming while running around the auditorium, not to mention the 30+ minutes worth of ads and previews. Going to the movies is a miserable experience for me now. I’ll wait for streaming to enjoy in the comfort of my living room.
When movies started getting too long, I began cutting back my theater attendance. Two hours was bad enough but three is beyond the pale.
Would rather Netflix have WB than Paramount, or any other company…Consolidation is the biggest issue (not only movie companies, but friggin EVERYTHING!) Causes prices to skyrocket. Aren’t there supposed to be laws about monopolies?
We rarely go out to the theater anymore due to the cost, and also the audience. Talking, phone use, and in the end, it’s just so much more comfortable to watch movies at home. It really doesn’t matter to me whether or not I see a movie on the big screen or not, anyway.
The difference between the studios having a fit about VCRs in the 80s destroying movie theaters & now is that the threat is REAL due to the electronic technology that is now attainable to the masses…but you know what? My ❤️ is 🥶 to an industry that bought me ALL the joy as a child until I was about 30 because I spent almost EVERY weekend in a movie theater where I felt at home…Meanwhile the industry was harboring monsters that preyed on humanity…Executives being INSANELY greedy while watching the MAJORITY of the talent that serve the industry barely be able to pay bills ..watched the industry highlight EVERY deplorable “ism” that’s attainable to humanity while backing a political party that’s ENSURED that the public the studios get their money from STAY broke & disenfranchised (whenever I hear that Hollywood is liberal…I wanna laugh until I 😢 😡)
I could care LESS about the Hollywood systems lamenting about movie theaters where the majority of workers in 2025 are ONLY making $3 an hour more than I did…40 years ago when I worked at The Chicago Fine Arts Theater….
Movie theaters were allowed to become monopolized and have priced themselves nearly out of existence. Going to the movies used to be an affordable option that is out of reach for most working class people when necessities are unaffordable. The cheap streaming services that used to cost $6 a month are doing the same thing (while refusing to fairly compensate talent). BOYCOTT it all. Check out DVDs from your local library and buy used DVDs from small business to stop funding these assh#oles gleefully destroying our country.
The reason why WB is for sale – https://prospect.org/2025/12/10/why-is-warner-bros-for-sale-at-all/
Short answer- if they sold the cable arm (CNN, TNT, TBS etc) they would get rid off most of their debt. They’re still 53 billion in debt. But David Zaslav gets up to 500 million if the movie arm (WB) is sold, even though it’s profitable. Guess which one Good Samaritan David pushed for.
It’s less about movie theatres pricing people out and more about due to streaming and the overturn of the Paramount decrees – which was keeping monopolies at bay- they’re back. There’ll be 3-4 streamers (Netflix, amazon, apple, maybe Disney) and they’ll each have their own theatres. So, it’s back to the 1950s studio system.