<\/p>\n
Netflix\u2019s deal to acquire Warner Bros.<\/a><\/span>, one of Hollywood\u2019s oldest movie studios, poses seismic shifts to the entertainment industry and the future of moviegoing.<\/p>\n As one of the remaining \u201cbig five\u201d studios, the 102-year-old Warner Bros. is an essential part of movie theater business.<\/p>\n The studio currently boasts three of the top five earning films domestically, including \u201cA Minecraft Movie,\u201d<\/a><\/span> in first place, \u201cSuperman\u201d and \u201cSinners,\u201d as well as the Oscar frontrunner, \u201cOne Battle After Another.\u201d<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n There are more questions than answers about how ownership from a streaming giant would change things for Warner Bros. It\u2019s not even clear if it will pass antitrust scrutiny, or, if it does, what the details will look like.<\/p>\n Here are some things to know, and lingering questions, in the wake of the news.<\/p>\n Yes, but it might change as well. For starters, it\u2019ll be at least 12 to 18 months before the deal officially goes through and moviegoers can expect essentially business as usual until then. Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos said Friday that they will \u201ccontinue to support\u201d a \u201clife cycle that starts in the movie theater\u201d for Warner Bros. movies. But he also commented that he doesn\u2019t think that \u201clong exclusive windows\u201d are consumer friendly.<\/p>\n With the rise of streaming, and especially in the pandemic era, studios experimented with different theatrical windows. For many years, a 90-day theatrical window was standard, but now it\u2019s closer to 45 days and often a film-by-film decision.<\/p>\n Netflix does release some films theatrically, but not usually more than a few weeks before they hit streaming. Sometimes that\u2019s to qualify for awards eligibility, sometimes it\u2019s a gesture to top filmmakers. This year those releases included Guillermo del Toro\u2019s \u201cFrankenstein,\u201d Kathryn Bigelow\u2019s \u201cA House of Dynamite\u201d and Noah Baumbach\u2019s \u201cJay Kelly.\u201d<\/p>\n Major chains like AMC and Regal had refused to program Netflix releases until 2022, when enthusiasm for the \u201cKnives Out\u201d movie \u201cGlass Onion\u201d<\/a><\/span> helped break the stalemate.<\/p>\n Earlier this year, \u201cKPop Demon Hunters\u201d unofficially topped the box office charts<\/a><\/span>, earning nearly $20 million from a one-weekend run in theaters two full months after it debuted on the streamer.<\/p>\n Netflix also owns and operates several movie theaters, including the Paris Theater in New York and the Egyptian Theatre in Los Angeles.<\/p>\n The studio has a diverse slate of films expected in 2026, with high profile titles including the Margot Robbie-led \u201cWuthering Heights\u201d in February, \u201cSupergirl\u201d in June, \u201cPractical Magic 2\u201d in September, Alejandro I\u00f1\u00e1rritu\u2019s untitled Tom Cruise movie in October and Denis Villeneuve\u2019s<\/a><\/span> \u201cDune: Part Three\u201d in December.<\/p>\n Movies planned for 2027 include sequels to \u201cSuperman,\u201d \u201cA Minecraft Movie\u201d and \u201cThe Batman.\u201d<\/p>\n Earlier this year the company said its target was 12 to 14 releases annually across its four main labels, Warner Bros. Pictures, DC Studios, New Line Cinema and Warner Bros. animation.<\/p>\n So much of this depends on the details, but Cinema United president and CEO Michael O\u2019Leary said hours before the news broke that it posed \u201can unprecedented threat to the global exhibition business.\u201d<\/p>\n He added: \u201cRegulators 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.\u201d<\/p>\n Theatrical exhibition has not fully recovered since the pandemic. Before 2020, the annual domestic box office regularly surpassed $11 billion. Since then it has only surpassed $9 billion once, in 2023, driven largely by \u201cBarbie,\u201d a Warner Bros. release.<\/p>\n It\u2019s too early to tell, but Warner Bros. has always prided itself on being one of the premier homes for top filmmakers, this year releasing films from Paul Thomas Anderson, Ryan Coogler and James Gunn. Other longstanding relationships include Villeneuve, who has \u201cDune: Part Three\u201d coming next year, Clint Eastwood and Todd Phillips. Much likely depends on whether robust theatrical releases will be honored \u2014 many of these filmmakers are vocal champions of the theatrical experience and may not stick around if it shifts.<\/p>\n The studio\u2019s controversial decision to release films simultaneously in theaters and on HBO Max in 2021 during the pandemic led to a rift with Christopher Nolan<\/a><\/span>, who after making eight major films with the company, including the \u201cDark Knight\u201d trilogy, partnered with Universal to make his next two films, \u201cOppenheimer\u201d and next year\u2019s \u201cThe Odyssey.\u201d<\/p>\n That\u2019s also unclear. If the two platforms remain separate subscriptions, there may be \u201cbundling\u201d options, as with Disney and Hulu. Netflix on Friday said that the addition of HBO and HBO Max programming will give its members \u201ceven more high-quality titles from which to choose\u201d and \u201coptimize its plans for consumers.\u201d<\/p>\n The Warner Bros. library of films includes classics like \u201cCasablanca\u201d and \u201cCitizen Kane\u201d as well as the \u201cHarry Potter\u201d movies.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\nWill Warner Bros. continue releasing movies in theaters?<\/h2>\n
Netflix and movie theaters<\/h2>\n
Upcoming Warner Bros. movies<\/h2>\n
What does it mean for movie theaters?<\/h2>\n
How will top filmmakers react?<\/h2>\n
Will HBO Max and Netflix become one service?<\/h2>\n