While other big name auteurs from Spike Lee to Steven Soderbergh are now partnering with Netflix, Steven Spielberg is continuing to advocate for seeing movies in theaters–and speaking out against streaming platforms as primary distributors. While accepting the Filmmaker Award at the Cinema Audio Society’s CAS Awards, the Oscar-winning director didn’t specifically name Netflix or other streaming platforms–or the directors who work with them–but something tells me that Netflix’s Chief Content Officer Ted Sarandos‘ ears were buzzing.
READ MORE: Steven Spielberg Thinks Netflix Films Are ‘TV Movies’ And Shouldn’t Compete For Oscars
“I hope all of us really continue to believe that the greatest contributions we can make as filmmakers is to give audiences the motion picture theatrical experience,” he said. “I’m a firm believer that movie theaters need to be around forever.” He went on to praise a number of elements about the home viewing experience, including the sound, given his audience, but he added, “but there’s nothing like going to a big dark theater with people you’ve never met before and having the experience wash over you. That’s something we all truly believe in.”
READ MORE: Apple Aiming To Take On Netflix With Shows From Steven Spielberg & Reese Witherspoon
He’s not wrong, of course; there’s inimitable value in seeing a movie in a theater, but Spielberg is in the rare, enviable position of power in Hollywood where he feels he doesn’t need to bow to the changes in distribution opportunities that other filmmakers can–and sometimes have to–take advantage of to have more people see their films. This isn’t the first time Spielberg has spoken out about this issue. Last March, he said, “But in fact, once you commit to a television format, you’re a TV movie. You certainly, if it’s a good show, deserve an Emmy, but not an Oscar. I don’t believe the films that are just given token qualifications in a couple of theaters for less than a week should qualify for the Academy Award nomination.”
Spielberg has already sounded like he’s in the tank for “Green Book“ on his Oscar ballot, but this all makes it sound even less likely that “Roma” would have ranked highly for him when it comes to voting. This weekend’s Oscar ceremony will confirm if he’s an outlier or if other Academy Award voters continue to feel similarly about Netflix films.
Check out Steven Spielberg’s partial speech at the CAS Awards the other night. What do you think? https://t.co/zRIFlfYPbo pic.twitter.com/KqQINONwt0
— Marc Malkin (@marcmalkin) February 18, 2019