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Next year,
you can. In an announcement that shook the film industry, Warner Bros., a
subsidiary of AT&T's WarnerMedia, said it will release its 2021
movies on AT&T's streaming service, HBO Max, at the same time they debut in theaters. Those films include Dune, The Matrix 4, and In the Heights, and they won't cost HBO Max subscribers anything extra.
- After 31 days on HBO Max, movies will be exclusive to theaters until they ship out to a Roku near you.
Warner Bros. was already planning a hybrid release for Wonder Woman 1984 on
Christmas Day. But with the pandemic getting worse and theater
attendance looking sadder than a concession stand with nothing but
Raisinets, the studio is cozying up to customers at home.
- Warner Bros. tried a traditional release of Tenet this September, but this announcement tells you all you need to know about how that went.
The move is a
boost for HBO Max, which launched this spring and is still waiting for
its Baby Yoda moment. Until yesterday, "HBO Max didn't have a brand
beyond 'HBO plus other random stuff.' Now it most definitely has a real
brand that makes sense to real people: Big movies in your house, no
waiting," Recode's Peter Kafka tweeted.
Theaters are losing hope for a Christmas miracle
AMC stock fell 16% and Cinemark's 22% following the news, capping off a devastating nine-month streak for theater chains.
But even before the pandemic, traditional theatrical releases faced pressure
from streamers like Netflix. While WarnerMedia CEO Ann Sarnoff said
this is a "unique one-year plan" because of Covid-19...some are
convinced this direct-to-consumer model could signal a permanent change
in film debuts.
- In April, the Trolls sequel pulled in $95 million from digital rentals in three weeks, beating out what the original earned in five months in theaters.
The big question: Even after the pandemic is under control, will consumers want to return to theaters and play elbow hockey with strangers?
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