According to Kotaku, Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos is positioning the streaming giant as a savior for Hollywood, not a destroyer. This comes as Netflix is currently on track to purchase Warner Bros. in a colossal $82.7 billion acquisition. If it clears regulators, the deal would give Netflix control of Warner’s massive film and TV catalog, plus its gaming division with properties like Batman’s Arkham series and Mortal Kombat. In a recent interview, Sarandos cast doubt on movie theaters, calling them inaccessible for most people outside of dense urban areas like Manhattan. His comments arrive as the Directors Guild of America, led by Christopher Nolan, plans to meet with Netflix to address “major concerns” over the potential Warner Bros. purchase and its impact on the industry.
The theater argument
Here’s the thing about Sarandos’s theater comments: they’re a classic case of a CEO shaping the narrative to fit his business model. He’s not wrong that the theatrical experience has changed, especially post-pandemic. But to say “most of the country cannot” go to the movies feels like a stretch. It’s not 1950. Most people don’t live in walking distance of a theater, but they do have cars, rideshares, and the ability to plan an outing. His point is really about convenience, not pure accessibility. Netflix‘s entire empire is built on instant, at-home access. So of course he’d frame the traditional, destination-based theater model as an “arbitrary limitation.” It’s a direct justification for why Netflix would prioritize streaming releases over long theatrical windows, especially for the films it would own from a place like Warner Bros.
A Hollywood reckoning
But the industry’s fear, as highlighted by that planned DGA meeting, is real. This isn’t just about where we watch movies. It’s about the fundamental economics of filmmaking. Theatrical releases aren’t just a tradition; for big-budget films, they’re a major revenue driver that funds the whole ecosystem. If Netflix, with a Warner-sized library, decides to funnel more tentpole movies directly to streaming, what happens to that financial model? Directors like Nolan aren’t just being nostalgic. They’re worried about the artistic and commercial value of the “event” film shrinking. A simultaneous or quick-to-stream release can dramatically undercut box office numbers. Netflix is basically saying, “We’ll be the new bank and the new theater.” And that’s a terrifying amount of power for one company to hold.
The real game
So look past the “saving Hollywood” talk. This is about IP domination. That $82.7 billion price tag is for Batman, Harry Potter, Game of Thrones, and everything else in the Warner vault. For Netflix, which has always struggled with owning lasting franchises, this is the ultimate shortcut. It’s not just buying a studio; it’s buying decades of built-in audience loyalty. The theater comments are a sideshow to the main event: controlling a universe of content so vast that subscribers could never leave. The meeting with the DGA is a formality. The trajectory is clear. Netflix is playing for keeps, and the definition of a “movie” release is probably changing forever because of it.
