Netflix boss Ted Sarandos isn’t likely to be down your local Odeon anytime soon: cinemas, he argues, are an “outmoded idea, for most people.”
Netflix boss Ted Sarandos appears to be in competition with Warner Bros Discovery chief David Zaslav in a quest to see who can get the most Christmas cards. Zaslav, hasn’t exactly endeared himself to cinephiles, having overseen the deletion of several completed films in exchange for a tax break. Sarandos? Well, he’s doubling down on his anti-cinema stance, as he continues to bang the Netflix drum.
Netflix has famously been averse to cinema releases, unless it’s required to do so to qualify for awards, and/or keep major talent happy. Ted Sarandos has been chatting at the Time100 summit, another high profile event to which our invite must have got lost in the post. And he insists that Netflix is “saving Hollywood” in response to a question as to whether streaming has done the town damage.
He went on to describe Netflix as a “very consumer-focused company”, that delivers “the program to you in the way you want to watch it.”
Specifically on the topic of physical cinemas, it’s hardly a stretch to say that the death of cinema would be useful to Netflix’s business model. A nice bit of collateral damage on the way to making shareholders a few more quid.
When questioned about cinemas, Ted Sarandos added that “I believe it is an outmoded idea, for most people — not for everybody.”
He also insists that he loves cinemas, and I’m sure he’d be given a very special seat and be made to feel very welcome at them.
The comments come at a point where Netflix has committed to its first IMAX run for Greta Gerwig’s upcoming Narnia movies, and where Guillermo del Toro is likely to secure a decent theatrical release window for Frankenstein later this year. Yet films such as Carry-On and The Electric State remain steadfastly available at home only, along with the bulk of Netflix’s output.
Gutted. Would loved to have seen The Ridiculous Six in 4DX.
