What We Might Lose When Netflix Absorbs Warner Bros. Discovery

But outside the boardroom, reaction has been far less celebratory.

“It's horrendous,” film critic Rendy Jones told TSBK. “A major shock to the system and a blow to people who work across various mediums in film, TV, and gaming.”

Jones argues that a consolidation of this scale will reshape what kinds of projects survive at all.

“It’s either death knell maga, prop machine made to continue evil,” he said. "Or streaming fodder and force the theatrical arm, which was already weak, to get dismembered.”

Jones points to a political and cultural climate where monopoly concerns barely register with the public, even as conglomerates grow more powerful.

“We live in a time where nobody gives a shit about monopolies expanding their growth,” he said. “And given that it was either this or the presidency getting control, fucking hell. The average consumer won't care much the ongoings of this because it means “aye more stuff for me to watch on Netflix.”

A cohort of film producers anonymously raised their concerns about the deal to Congress in a letter, arguing that “Netflix views any time spent watching a movie in a theater as time not spent on their platform." They claimed the company has “no incentive to support theatrical exhibition, and every incentive to kill it.” The writers also raised alarms about “monopolistic control” of the streaming market.

For everyday moviegoers, a number of worries immediately raised eyebrows.

Rising prices

Fewer competitors often means fewer reasons to keep prices down, so naturally many expect subscription fees to surge far beyond their current tiers.

The possible erosion of theatrical releases

Netflix says it “expects to maintain Warner Bros.’ current operations…including theatrical releases," per their press release. Yet critics note that billion-dollar acquisitions are rarely made to preserve the status quo. Shortened theater windows could become the norm, which some see as weakening the already fragile movie theater ecosystem.

Creative narrowing

Netflix’s reputation for canceling shows quickly and favoring algorithm-safe hits has sparked concern about its stewardship of Warner’s vast catalog. As one X user put it, “The same company that cancels shows after one season for not hitting arbitrary viewership metrics will soon own the entire DC film universe, and countless other iconic franchises. Good luck ever seeing another mid-budget original movie or risky creative swing again.”