By Jonathan Klotz | Published
Netflix buys Warner Bros. and the entertainment industry will never be the same. The landmark purchase combines the world’s largest streaming service with one of the oldest studios, all for $72.7 billion (Netflix is taking on $10 billion in debt from Warner, bringing the total to $82.7), making it the fourth largest acquisition this decade.
For years, the streaming company has been hastening the death of cinema. Before the ink is even dry on the acquisition, it’s clear that the company’s attitude toward the theatrical experience hasn’t changed, so if you love going to the theater, enjoy it while you can, because the end of the industry is closer than ever.
David Zaslav is absent, a new villain has arrived
David Zaslav, the CEO of Warner Bros., immediately became a villain when he leaked Bat girl to claim tax savings, he then held the Looney Tunes throwback vehicle Coyote vs. ACME hostage, and decided to remove as many animated series as possible from HBO Max. At the same time, Warner Bros. launched a series of successes in 2025, including A Minecraft movie, Superman, Weapons, SinnersAnd Final destination: Bloodlinesresulting in one of the most successful strings of theatrical releases this century. For all his faults, Zaslav embraced the old way of supporting movie theaters, which is more than can be said for Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos, the man who will soon become the most hated man in Hollywood.
On the day the Netflix acquisition was finalized, Sarandos said of the public: “They would like to watch home movies, thank you. Studios and theaters are competing to try to preserve this 45-day window that is completely out of step with the consumer experience of simply liking a movie. This doesn’t inspire much confidence in the theatrical experience, and it makes things even worse. At a press conference, Sarandos commented that Hollywood was stuck in the trap of making movies to lure people into theaters, saying instead that studios should respond to audience demand for an enhanced at-home experience.
Netflix has kept its original films out of theaters except for cursory release to be eligible for awards shows or, in the case of Demon Hunters Kpopdue to overwhelming demand. Nobody demands to see Rebel Moon Or The Electric State in IMAX, but Netflix now has major film franchises: Harry Potter, Mad Max, Godzilla, Friday the 13th, Rocky and the entire DC universe. Overnight we entered a world where The Batman 2 could be a Netflix exclusive.
A world without Warner Bros.
Kevin James was the canary in the coal mine of movie theaters losing the type of mid-budget films that carried the business between blockbuster releases, but what would happen if these blockbusters started being released directly to streaming? Netflix’s strategy has been to offer everything to every audience, to the point of becoming an essential entertainment service. Ted Sarandos has done nothing to calm the pessimists; rather, it doubles down on society’s desire to do away with movie theaters altogether.
Without the series of theatrical releases from Warner Bros. in 2025, this year would have been disastrous for cinemas. Disney Zootopia 2 and the next Avatar: Fire and Ash will gross over $1 billion, but all three Marvel films have underperformed. Universal Villain: for good And Jurassic Park: Rebirth were hits, but all of their other films underperformed this year. If you take one of the oldest and most successful studios out of the equation, the math for movie theaters ends up in disaster.
No one knows what to expect from Netflix in the coming months, and it will take years for the merger to be finalized since it still needs to be approved by government regulators, but the company’s past behavior is a good indication that this is the end for the movie industry. Prepare for the next Harry Potter series to be pushed like the second coming of Strange things, and every Warner-produced series must adopt the “Netflix style” of being overly lit and exposition-filled to support “second screen viewing.” It will be hell for moviegoers, and it will only get worse.
