Netflix and Warner Bros. are going to become one and while you might be thinking “Oh good, one less streaming service,” this doesn’t bode well for movie theaters.
Co-CEO of Netflix, Ted Sarandos, has always pushed back at the “theatrical experience” and now he has shared his opinions on it all and how “outdated” it is to keep movies from streaming platforms. Sarandos, in a statement about the deal, said that “we’re in a person of transition” when it comes to the theatrical release.
“Folks grew up thinking, ‘I want to make movies on a gigantic screen and have strangers watch them [and to have them] play in the theater for two months and people cry and sold-out shows … It’s an outdated concept.” It isn’t though. People still do want to go to the movies, the Warner Bros. film Barbie made over a billion dollars. Movies like Top Gun: Maverick revitalized cinema in a post-pandemic world.
What I think Sarandos misunderstands is that people DO want to go to the movies but the pricing is rising thanks to streamers making it too easily available!!! “What is the consumer trying to tell us? That they’d like to watch movies at home, thank you. The studios and the theaters are duking it out over trying to preserve this 45-day window that is completely out of step with the consumer experience of just loving a movie.”
What this is giving is out of touch. Sarandos is missing the point of what the issue is and this feels like it isn’t going to go well in the long run in regards to keeping movie theaters alive. The 45 day window is a lot shorter than it used to be and it doesn’t help that people think “I’ll just wait for streaming” because of how Sarandos is pushing it.
It’s not outdated, Ted
Frankly, I am someone who loves going to the movies and it does really upset me that movies I want to see in theaters basically have a two week window tops. Yes, I do go opening weekend but I am also someone that loves seeing a movie multiple times. I remember when I would go out in the summer growing up and spend all day in the movie theaters.
So to hear Sarandos act as if people don’t care about going to movie theaters is upsetting. Especially when that is not the case, especially after the year that Warner Bros. had in theaters! But more than that, dismissing theaters to cater to the consumer is ignoring the consumers who still want theatrical experiences.
Yes, the landscape has changed. Part of that is the fault of Netflix and streaming but I also think many of us wish we could see Netflix movies in theaters! Maybe it won’t be as bad as I think it will be. Maybe Sarandos will extend his Netflix release window while still bringing films to streaming sooner rather than later but I am not exactly hopeful after Sarandos comments on movie theaters…
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