"Timed to ruin holidays like a round of end-of-year layoffs, the streaming giant announced plans to buy Warner Bros, a movie and television studio with a full-century legacy. It's possible that the acquisition won't actually go through and if it does, it won't be for at least a year. But the news still looms over year-end awards and list-making, and it's going to take more than a jingle-bell heist to steal back any holiday cheer for the entertainment industry,"
"Even more depressing: the entity that seems most able to take action against this is another attempted consolidation. Paramount has launched a bid for a hostile takeover of Warner Bros Discovery, which would bring two big studios under one extremely Trump-friendly umbrella. This would almost certainly further cull the number of wide-release movies released each year. Depression might not seem like a rational response, especially for anyone who doesn't actually work in said industry."
"Yet the news last week had hundreds of film fans posting eulogies and defenses not just of Warner Bros as a studio which on its own includes a vast history encompassing classics like Casablanca, The Adventures of Robin Hood, The Departed, Bonnie and Clyde, The Searchers, and The Matrix, among hundreds but the very fabric of theatrical moviegoing. It's an institution that many of us took for granted for years."
Netflix announced plans to buy Warner Bros, raising concerns about media consolidation and potential impacts on theatrical moviegoing. The acquisition may not close and could take at least a year, but the announcement already casts a shadow over year-end awards and lists. Paramount has launched a hostile bid for Warner Bros Discovery, potentially concentrating more studios under a single, politically aligned owner and likely reducing the number of wide-release films. Unions and industry workers are opposing the sales. Many film fans mourned Warner Bros' legacy of classic films and expressed fear for the future of theaters.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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