As you’ve heard by now, Warner Bros.’ game-changing seismic decision to put all their 2021 films out on HBO Max simultaneously with whatever theaters are open next year, not only shocked and angered people in Hollywood, it actually blindsided many actors, directors, and talents too. We’ve already heard that Legendary Pictures were so appalled with the decision they’re threatening to sue Warner Bros. over the releases of “Godzilla Vs. Kong,” and “Dune,” movies Legendary produced and WB will distribute via their collaborative deal. Still, the one voice everyone wanted to hear from was Warner Bros. top dog filmmaker: Christopher Nolan.
READ MORE: WarnerMedia To Release All 2021 WB Films Simultaneously On HBO Max & In Theaters
Would the filmmaker, who released “Tenet” this summer via Warner Bros. in theaters to a middling box-office response thanks to the pandemic, be outraged and angered? The answer is a bit of yes and no. While Nolan praised Warner Bros. for being the best movie service in the world, he blasted their streaming decision and called HBO Max the “worst streaming service in the process.”
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“Some of our industry’s biggest filmmakers and most important movie stars went to bed the night before thinking they were working for the greatest movie studio and woke up to find out they were working for the worst streaming service,” Nolan said in a statement given to The Hollywood Reporter.
“Warner Bros. had an incredible machine for getting a filmmaker’s work out everywhere, both in theaters and in the home, and they are dismantling it as we speak,” he continued. “They don’t even understand what they’re losing. Their decision makes no economic sense, and even the most casual Wall Street investor can see the difference between disruption and dysfunction.”
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In an ET Online interview released Monday about the DVD/Blu-Ray release of “Tenet,” Nolan went further and suggested Warner’s made a mess by not consulting any of the people they work with first. “There’s such controversy around it, because they didn’t tell anyone,” Nolan explained. “It’s very, very, very, very messy. A real bait and switch. Yeah, it’s sort of not how you treat filmmakers and stars and people who, these guys have given a lot for these projects. They deserved to be consulted and spoken to about what was going to happen to their work.”
So yes, Nolan isn’t pleased. And given his theatrical-first mentality, his commitment to the theatrical experience, and everything he’s done to ensure the theatrical experience survives, this probably isn’t too much of a shock.
Christopher Nolan’s “Tenet,” distributed by Warner Bros., grossed $359 million worldwide and $57.6 million in the U.S. this summer, some of his worst numbers in ages, but obviously much lower than usual thanks to the pandemic and the way it decimated theaters and theatergoers appetite for visiting theaters even where they were open.
Warner Bros. stunned Hollywood on Dec. 3 with its now-infamous announcement that all 17 of its 2021 titles — including the fourth “Matrix.” “The Suicide Squad,” and “In the Heights” — would debut on HBO Max at the same time as their theatrical release. Nolan’s said his reaction was “disbelief….especially the way in which they did.” This is probably only the beginning of a flood of reactions from other filmmakers who might have been holding their tongues for now.