When Sonya Yokota William heard this Netflix was ready to buy the Warner Bros. television and film studio. Discovery — one of Hollywood's oldest and most valuable assets — she couldn't help but worry that the future of moviegoing itself was in jeopardy.
Netflix's assurances that it will maintain the studio's current operations, including theatrical releases, have done little to assuage industry concerns about the streaming giant's handling of theatrical releases.
“I think the proof is in the pudding, and what we've seen so far is a complete reluctance to show films in theaters,” said William, director of the Independent Canadian Exhibitors Network, an alliance of independent movie theaters.
Although Netflix has agreed to buy the television and film studios and streaming division of Warner Bros. Discovery for US$72 billion, a deal still subject to regulatory approval. Meanwhile, Paramount Skydance filed for a hostile takeover worth US$108.4 billion.
Industry analysts say that while people still want to watch movies in theaters, the cost of such services has risen and customers need a more compelling reason to go. Some analysts believe theater companies and studios haven't done enough to position their product as a relatively inexpensive experience.
“An Unprecedented Threat”
Netflix's takeover bid “poses an unprecedented threat to the global exhibition business,” said Michael O'Leary, president and CEO of Cinema United, a trade organization that represents more than 31,000 movie theaters in the U.S. and Canada.
Netflix's business model doesn't support showing movies in theaters, he said.
The deal could result in a loss of 25 percent of annual domestic box office revenue ifMovies that are “traditionally released theatrically by Warner Bros. are disappearing from theaters,” he said.
Domestic box office revenue was about $8.7 billion in 2024, up from $9 billion in 2023, according to media analytics firm Comscore.
O'Learley criticized what he called Netflix's “token theatrical release” of several films, which he said was largely done to ensure they received Oscar consideration. Guillermo del Toro FrankensteinFor example, the film had a limited release for three weeks starting on October 17th and then was available to watch on Netflix on November 7th.
Netflix has agreed to buy Warner Bros.' TV and film studios. Discovery, as well as its streaming division, for US$72 billion. If the deal wins regulatory approval, it will change the media landscape, with some film companies expressing concern for their future.
Industry problems concern nThis is not only about Netflix's business model, but also about statements by Ted Sarandos, co-CEO of Netflix, who has questioned the future of theater.
For exampleJust this past April, Sarandos, speaking at the TIME100 summit in New York, called the concept of people watching movies as a shared experience an “outdated idea.”
“Who would benefit in this scenario if we removed the option of watching a movie in a theater?” – asked William.
Serena Wheatley, director of programming at The Revue Cinema, an independent theater in Toronto that shows old films, says Warner Bros. is probably one of their best distributors. But she wonders if their catalog will be available tom exhibit if Netflix is taking over.
“There's a reason exhibitors are very concerned right now,” Whitley said. “If they just decide not to handle the catalog the way you can access it now, it could have a big impact on [repertory] cinemas.”
Objection to exclusive windows
Since announcing the bid, Sarandos appears to have softened his negative tone regarding the theatrical release.
He said Netflix isn't opposed to movies in theaters, and that its opposition is more about long exclusive windows—times when movies are only available in theaters—which they feel aren't consumer-friendly.
In April, the Los Angeles Times reported that the average theater window reduced to approximately 30 days post COVID-19. Before the pandemic, films typically spent at least 80 days in theaters before being available for home viewing.
How it happens1:17:17It's “Is that all guys?” for films in cinemas?
But Alicia Reese, a senior analyst who covered the media and entertainment sector at financial services firm Wedbush, says the problem is the shorter theatrical window that Netflix is aiming for.
“You teach moviegoers not to look out the cinema window. And that’s the risk of it being too short,” she said.
She also says that while Netflix has said it will honor the studio's theatrical release commitments until about 2029 or 2030, the question is what it will do after that.
According to Reese, there are still a lot of films that are not scheduled for release, meaning Netflix could bring these films under its umbrella and make them available on its streaming platform.
Some analysts say films are losing revenue due to short theatrical releases. The Numbers, a website that analyzes the film industry, published a report in April 2025 that found that short theatrical windows cost domestic movie theaters an estimated $100 million annually.
“My opinion is that although [Netflix] will honor these exclusive theatrical showcases, they will quickly understand their value,” she said. “And they'll probably change their tune.”
But The bidding war for Warner Bros. has just begun. newly introduced questions it was raised earlier about the future of cinema in general,or Watching movies at home is simply an irresistible trend.
“For two decades, movie theaters have constantly struggled with how to get people into their seats. Today this problem has become an existing one.real threat,” according to new report released ahead of Netflix's bid from consulting firm Bain & Co.
The report found that during the pandemic Release schedules have collapsed, consumer habits have changed, and digital platforms have proliferated. In addition, according to the report, the cost of going to the cinema has increased and consumers now perceive the cinema to be expensive.
Cityng figures from Numbers, The report said movie theater attendance in the country is still only 64 percent of pre-pandemic levels.
Customers need a “compelling reason to leave”
Meanwhile in Canada According to Statistics Canada's August 2025 report, movie theater business grew in 2024 but has not yet reached pre-pandemic peaks. Theater attendance was also found to be stagnating at about two-thirds the level seen six years earlier.
The Bain report concluded that audiences aren't leaving theaters, they just “need a better reason to go.”
This includes reimagining the industry as a “premium service” and seeing a movie in theaters as “an event, a destination, an experience that is much more affordable than a Taylor Swift concert ticket.”
“Theaters can deliver on this promise with premium theaters, service and personalization that cannot be replicated at home,” the report said.
Reese says studios also need to be more adept at marketing their films.
“It's not that moviegoers don't want to go, because as you can see, they definitely go when there's content they actually want to see,” she said.
William of the Independent Canadian Exhibitors Network noted theatrical box office success Barbie And Oppenheimer — known collectively as “Barbenheimer” since both were released on the same day in 2023 — as proof that audiences are still eager to see movies in theaters.
“Being able to see a movie in a theater means you actually care about watching that movie and care about making the time,” William said. “We just think audiences deserve to be able to have this experience.”
