James Cameron Says Netflix Buying WB Would Be A “Disaster” & Wants Netflix Films Longer In Theaters To Qualify For Oscars

Tells us what you really think, James Cameron! In a new interview with Puck News’ Matthew Belloni on his Ringer podcast “The Town,” the “Avatar: Fire & Ash” director was directly asked to talk about his opinion on the possibility of Netflix and Paramount Pictures both bidding to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery, and he certainly thinks one option is better than the other for one glaring reason.

With David Ellison‘s Paramount (Cameron once co-produced with Skydance on “Terminator: Dark Fate“), the filmmaker believes Warner Bros. Pictures would be in better hands, given Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos‘ openly saying theatrical is “dead” and alluding to the Netflix boss not going into a deal like that with the best of intentions for either audiences or the film industry.

“I think Paramount’s the best choice . Absolutely. Netflix would be a disaster. Sorry, Ted, but geez. Sarandos has gone on the record saying theatrical films are dead. ‘Theatrical is dead. Quote, unquote,” Cameron quipped about the next potential studio merger after Skydance just took over Paramount.

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Belloni tried to give Netflix/Sarandos a bit of cover by suggesting Netflix is warming up to the idea of the theatrical model. “He’s now promising theaters if he buys Warner Bros,” Cameron responded to that with a laugh and pressed about Netflix being able to qualify for the Oscars by keeping their movies in theaters longer with larger screen counts to boot.

“I know, but it’s sucker bait, right. ‘We’ll put the movie out for a week or 10 days. We’ll qualify for Oscar consideration.’ See, I think that’s fundamentally rotten to the core. A movie should be made as a movie for theatrical, and the Academy Awards mean nothing to me if they don’t mean theatrical. I think they’ve been co-opted, and I think it’s horrific.”

Belloni then asked, “You don’t think they should be allowed to compete for Oscars?” Cameron stated, “They should be allowed to compete if they put the movie out for a meaningful release in 2,000 theaters for a month.” Before reminding Belloni that his upcoming “Avatar” sequel is going to be shown on 7,500 screens in December, so having their movies in more than 2,000 theaters isn’t the biggest hurdle for the streaming giant to accomplish.

“Give me a f***ing break, we’re going to be on 7,500 screens,” Cameron said of his own film’s theater count in comparison to what Netflix is doing for their films to qualify for the Academy Awards.

Cameron is certainly a loud voice within the industry, still championing the theatrical experience (he previously tried to make 3D technology the next big thing to help get butts in seats and sell tickets) and clearly isn’t afraid to share his thoughts on Netflix, which doesn’t sound like he’s their biggest fan for the reasons he laid out.

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“Avatar: Fire & Ash” will be in theaters this December, with Billie Eilish‘s big concert event film “Hit Me Hard & Soft: The Tour (Live In 3D)” (how Cameron found the extra time to direct is beyond us) also being released by Ellison/Paramount on March 20.

You can listen to that full chat between Cameron and Belloni below.

“Netflix buying Warner Bros would be a disaster.”

Listen to the full two-part conversation with James Cameron on The Town with @mattbelloni! pic.twitter.com/tLchu2OvI3

— The Ringer (@ringer) November 25, 2025