Last month Netflix announced a deal valued at US$72 billion (C$99.9 billion). purchase Warner Bros. Discoveryas well as all of its film and television studios and streaming divisions. In a new report published Deadline about the film's box office success Strange thingThe New Year's Eve finale revealed that Netflix had reportedly offered a 17-day theatrical release window following the acquisition, which would “boost theatrical business.”
It's worth noting that this is not a confirmation that Netflix will actually enter into a deal in this window if and when the deal is approved. Theater companies may have the opportunity to negotiate a longer period, but the impact of the proposed deal will likely have ramifications for all theaters, especially independent ones, as Netflix continues to support streaming. One would have expected a massive drop in box office receipts due to the limited number of theatrical releases, as well as the fact that audiences decided to wait just over two weeks to watch the film after its release on streaming.
Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos previously said: “There has been a lot of talk about theatrical release, so we want to be clear: we are 100% committed to releasing Warner Bros. films. in movie theaters with windows that meet industry standards.” The previous theatrical window standard used by AMC was around 45 days, making this potential reduction extreme. It seems, Stranger Things The ending, which earned over $25 million at the box office, is still not enough for Netflix to keep the films in theaters for longer periods of time.
The Writers Guild of America (WGA) strongly opposed the merger, and Paramount Skydance previously filed a hostile takeover bid for Warner Bros. at the beginning of December. In a recent appearance on Matt Belloni's podcast City, James Cameron shared that, in his opinion, the takeover of the Netflix studio will be “to be a disaster.”
