Warner Bros., the film studio that’s older than television and probably your grandmother, has been the gift that everybody was trying to get their hands on this holiday season. Paramount wanted it. Comcast wanted it. However, Netflix will be the company that, pending regulatory approval, walks away with the hottest property in the auction house, for a cool $83 billion.
One of the biggest questions hanging over a potential Netflix purchase was whether the streaming-first studio was going to keep releasing Warner Bros. movies in theaters, considering Netflix itself really tries to avoid doing that. In the announcement, via THR, Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos seemed to indicate that WB movies would still be theatrical releases, saying…
