By India McCarty
Theater owners are calling on Senate lawmakers to stop the pending Netflix-Warner Bros. merger, saying it could have an “irreversible negative impact on movie theatres around the world.”
“If Netflix succeeds in acquiring Warner Bros., the results will be economically and culturally catastrophic: fewer theatres, shorter windows, less revenue, fewer jobs across the national and global entertainment industry, and fewer movies for consumers to see in theatres,” Cinema United, a trade organization for theater exhibitors, said in a statement to the Senate antitrust committee.
The statement continued, “We are deeply concerned that this acquisition of Warner Bros. by Netflix will have a direct and irreversible negative impact on movie theatres around the world.”
In the statement, Cinema United advocated: “We are deeply concerned that this acquisition of Warner Bros. by Netflix will have a direct and irreversible negative impact on movie theatres around the world. Such an acquisition will further consolidate control over production and… pic.twitter.com/U9fi0vW81l
Related: Why the Netflix Warner Bros. Merger May Only Lead to a Weaker Entertainment Industry
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Cinema United pointed out that this merger would “further consolidate control over production and distribution of motion pictures in the hands of a single, dominant, global streaming platform in a market that is already highly concentrated,” affecting not just theater owners, but movie fans and community businesses.
“The key to a successful industry overall is having a diverse, robust, and consistent product pipeline that responds to consumer demand,” the statement continued. “We must heed the lessons of the past: further industry consolidation has consistently led to fewer movies being made, and there is no reason whatsoever to believe the outcome here would be any different, particularly given Netflix’s stated views of movie theatres over the past decade-plus.”
These remarks are in response to Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos’ comments regarding the window for theatrical releases.
“It’s not like we have this opposition to movies into theaters,” Sarandos said in a December 2025 investor call. “My pushback has been mostly in the fact of the long exclusive windows, which we don’t really think are that consumer-friendly.”
He added, “I think, over time, the windows will evolve to be much more consumer friendly, to be able to meet the audience where they are quicker…our primary goal is to bring first-run movies to our members, because that’s what they’re looking for.”
As it stands now, Warner Bros. seems committed to the Netflix deal. Last month, they publicly rejected an offer from Paramount, saying it was “inadequate particularly given the insufficient value it would provide, the lack of certainty in PSKY’s [Paramount Skydance] ability to complete the offer, and the risks and costs borne by WBD shareholders should PSKY fail to complete the offer.”
Movie-lovers everywhere are hopeful the Senate will put a stop to the planned Netflix-Warner Bros. partnership, protecting theaters, as well as the movie industry itself.
Read Next: What to Know About Netflix’s Warner Bros. Acquisition
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