It really does feel like a lifetime ago when Warner Bros. defiantly said, during the beginning of the pandemic, that every film released in 2021 was going to hit theaters and streaming on the same day. That announcement caused all sorts of ripples throughout the industry, leading filmmakers to get upset and theater owners to wonder what the future of the business might look like. Now, just over two years later and with new leadership, Warner Bros. Discovery is doing an about-face and not only embracing theatrical release for films but, apparently, shunning direct-to-streaming films as a result.
Speaking at today’s CinemaCon panel (via Deadline), Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav minced no words when describing the studio’s commitment to the theatrical release strategy. Instead of just talking about how he believes in the power of the theatrical experience and the profits gained from it, the executive went a step further by condemning the idea of a direct-to-streaming strategy altogether.
“We do not believe in streaming movies,” said Zaslav. “Movies [in theaters] perform substantially better when we bring them to HBO Max than any of the direct-to-streaming movies. We said it nine months ago, and we said it six months ago. We have never felt stronger about it.”
There’s really no way to read that statement without thinking that WBD is getting out of the direct-to-streaming game completely. This isn’t a shock, as Zaslav said, because we’ve already seen the studio kill “Batgirl,” which was meant to debut on then-HBO Max, while also transitioning streaming films like “Evil Dead Rise” and “Blue Beetle” for theatrical release. Obviously, the strategy has already paid off with “Evil Dead Rise,” which earned more than $42 million worldwide over its debut weekend and looks to turn a nice profit during its theatrical run.
However, it’s still interesting to see one of the big studios talk such a big game on a huge stage like this. It’s a line in the sand that will be interesting to see play out, especially as WBD hopes for big things with its rebranded Max streaming service. Will we ever see a streaming film debut on there or is Zaslav going to stand firm with the idea that WBD makes theatrical films, end of story? We’ll find out.
Regardless, WBD does have a huge slate of films coming to theaters this year, and Zaslav is hoping the studio begins its turnaround after a tumultuous period. But if you’re a filmmaker hoping to pitch a streaming film, you may want to go somewhere else for now.
