Warner Bros.' 'Barbie' Warner Bros. Pictures Share on Facebook Share on X Google Preferred Share to Flipboard Show additional share options Share on LinkedIn Share on Pinterest Share on Reddit Share on Tumblr Share on Whats App Send an Email Print the Article Post a Comment Netflix just solidified itself as the leading entertainment company (and then some), and all it cost was $83 billion. The East coast is just waking up to the bombshell news that Netflix is buying Warner Bros. (but not Discovery - the split and spin is still on). That's kind of weird, as Warner Bros. is famously a legacy film studio. How legacy is it? WB's composition in 1923 literally predates the advent of television, which Netflix basically upended when it switched from DVDs to streaming video. (Or at least, when it launched Lilyhammer, House of Cards and Orange Is the New Black.) Related Stories Business It's Official: Netflix to Acquire Warner Bros. in Deal Valued at $82.7 Billion Business Hollywood Blockbuster: Netflix Poised to Win Battle for Warner Bros. In his Friday morning acquisition announcement, Ted Sarandos, Netflix's co-CEO and former chief content officer, first shouted out (in order) his affinity for (and excitement over ownership of) Casablanca, Citizen Kane and Harry Potter - three very theatrically released films. Netflix famously does not distribute its movies in theaters, with (very) few, (very) limited exceptions. "Our mission has always been to entertain the world," Sarandos said in a prepared statement. "By combining Warner Bros.' incredible library of shows and movies - from timeless classics like Casablanca and Citizen Kane to modern favorites like Harry Potter and Friends - with our culture-defining titles like Stranger Things, KPop Demon Hunters and Squid Game, we'll be able to do that even better. Together, we can give audiences more of what they love and help define the next century of storytelling." In the same press release, Netflix affirms it is committed to releasing Warner Bros. films theatrically - well, it sort of affirms that. "Warner Bros.' studios are world-class, with Warner Bros. recognized as a leading supplier of television titles and filmed entertainment. HBO and HBO Max also provide a compelling, complementary offering for consumers," the media alert reads. "Netflix expects to maintain Warner Bros.' current operations and build on its strengths, including theatrical releases for films." To be clear, we bolded the "expects" there - but even without our darker, thicker font, that is heavy verb use right there. Shortly after the acquisition announcement, on a conference call with media analysts, Sarandos was asked about the subject of theatrical distribution. "I wouldn't look at this as a change in approach for Netflix movies - or for Warner movies for that matter. I think over time, I think the windows will evolve to be much more consumer friendly, to be able to meet the audience where they are, quicker," he said. "All those things I'd like to do, but I'd say right now, you should count on everything that is planned on going to the theater through Warner Bros. will continue to go to the theaters through Warner Brothers. And Netflix movies will take the same strides they have, which is, some of them do have a short run in the theater beforehand, but our primary goal is to bring first-run movies to our members, because that's what they're looking for." Sarandos is positively giddy about the deal, and WBD chief David Zaslav is ... saying the right things. "Today's announcement combines two of the greatest storytelling companies in the world to bring to even more people the entertainment they love to watch the most," Zaslav said on Friday. "For more than a century, Warner Bros. has thrilled audiences, captured the world's attention, and shaped our culture. By coming together with Netflix, we will ensure people everywhere will continue to enjoy the world's most resonant stories for generations to come." Paramount Skydance chief David Ellison and WBD boss David Zaslav Frazer Harrison/Getty Images; Rodin Eckenroth/WireImage Paramount Skydance, the company that did not win the bidding war for Warner Bros., is feeling all sorts of feels this morning. In a letter sent Monday from Paramount's attorneys to Warner Bros. Discovery's lawyers, the counsel for the losing party repeatedly stated how bad Netflix Warner Bros. (our working title) would be for the movie industry. "Netflix does not have the same incentive to release films in theaters and will be incentivized to use WBD's world-class IP library to entrench Netflix's streaming dominance while also harming theatrical distribution, talent and moviegoers," it reads. There's a lot of that. Like also: "Netflix, if combined with WBD, will reduce the number of films for broad theatrical release, further pushing consumers away from theaters to streaming and harming those theaters which are already struggling. Given that the co-CEO of Netflix has called brick-an