Cameron backs Paramount in WBD acquisition
February 20, 2026
In a letter to US Senator Mike Lee – who chairs the Senate subcommittee on antitrust, competitive policy and consumer rights – Hollywood director James Cameron has argued that allowing Netflix to purchase the Warner Bros Discovery (WBD) studio will be “disastrous” for cinemas and weaken an essential element in the Hollywood chain that will almost certainly lead to substantial job losses.
Cameron, whose credits include Titanic, Aliens, Terminator 2 and the Avatar movies, pointed to prior remarks from Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos calling cinemas an “outdated concept” and an “outmoded idea.”
“I believe strongly that the proposed sale of Warner Brothers Discovery to Netflix will be disastrous for the theatrical motion picture business that I have dedicated my life’s work to,” Cameron wrote. “Of course, my films all play in the downstream video markets as well, but my first love is the cinema.”
“The business model of Netflix is directly at odds with the theatrical film production and exhibition business, which employs hundreds of thousands of Americans,” continued Cameron. “It is therefore directly at odds with the business model of the Warner Brothers movie division, one of the few remaining major movie studios.”
Cameron added that the merger would “remove consumer choice by reducing the number of feature motion pictures that are made, and would also “restrict the choices of film-makers looking for studios to invest in their projects, which will in turn reduce jobs.”
Testifying before the Senate subcommittee on antitrust earlier this February, Sarandos committed to a 45-day theatrical window. Cameron, however, is sceptical. He believes Netflix will likely change course somewhere down the line since theatrical releases fundamentally clash with its business model. Cameron also says the pledge doesn’t mean anything unless Sarandos specifies the number of cinemas where Warner Bros movies will be screened.
“Netflix has done only a handful of theatrical releases, and only then under pressure from prestigious filmmakers,” noted Cameron. “But these are usually in a token number of theatres, and are mostly done to qualify for Academy Awards. These releases do not represent the bread-and-butter of the exhibition business.”
On February 17th, Netflix permitted WBD to reopen talks with Paramount to consider its offer for seven days (ending on February 23rd).
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