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Christopher Nolan Rips HBO Max as "Worst Streaming Service," Denounces Warner Bros.' Plan
To many insiders, WarnerMedia's blindsiding of talent and their reps with news that it would send 17 films directly to HBO Max in 2021 felt like an insult.
For many in the movie business — producers, directors, stars and their representatives — Dec. 3, 2020, is a day that will live in infamy.
"Some of our industry's biggest filmmakers and most important movie stars went to bed the night before thinking they were working for the greatest movie studio and woke up to find out they were working for the worst streaming service," filmmaker Christopher Nolan, whose relationship with Warners dates back to Insomnia in 2002, said in a statement to The Hollywood Reporter.
[...] According to a source, [Warner Bros. film studio chairman Toby] Emmerich tried to soothe In the Heights director Jon M. Chu by pointing out that the movie was still getting a "global theatrical release." But industry insiders say the studio is pretending that pirates won't pounce as soon as these films are streaming on HBO Max. As soon as one does, there's an "excellent version of the movie everywhere immediately," notes one industry veteran.
[...] Many think Legendary [Entertainment] will be the first to file a legal challenge. The company fired off a previous lawyer letter after Netflix offered something north of $225 million for the rights to Godzilla vs. Kong, which has seen its release date moved from March 2020 to November to May 2021. Though Legendary financed 75 percent of the movie, Warners had the power to block the sale and did. Legendary asked whether the studio would then give it a deal to stream the movie on HBO Max — and got no clear answer until its executives woke up one December morning to find that the movie was going day-and-date on the service without the benefit of a negotiation. Legendary's even more expensive picture, Dune, is getting the same treatment. The other companies that finance Warners movies, Village Roadshow and Bron, are also said to be aggrieved parties that might end up going to court.
Related: AT&T Exempts HBO Max From Data Caps but Still Limits Your Netflix Use
"Gone With the Wind" -- Gone from HBO Max
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday December 09 2020, @02:34AM (5 children)
from showing films parallel to streaming (besides Democrat governors)? I'm sure I'm not the only one who cut the cord, but would be willing to see a movie on the big screen (better than any TV I can buy). Of course they would have to show something sufficiently interesting. I really haven't watched many new films in the last 10 years, but the last two were Chinese (the Wandering Earth, and one about a military acting troupe).
Or from showing classic movies from the past. The local brewpub-theater did this successfully, until the governor killed his business.
(Score: 2) by ledow on Wednesday December 09 2020, @10:44AM (1 child)
Buy a projector.
Even a 95" screen in a decent size room is stupidly cheap and good.
And you can go to ludicrous sizes.
I stopped going to the cinema years ago and just grabbed a few old projectors that were headed for the bin, and an old (cine-era!) pull-down screen. Hell, I bought a popcorn maker.
People literally come round my house to watch movies.
Cinema is dead in the face of that kind of thing being available for sale in any electronics store, and with things like COVID.
(Score: 2) by takyon on Wednesday December 09 2020, @12:33PM
For the splurge, an ultra short throw 4K HDR laser projector could be the ultimate theater killer.
https://www.projectorcentral.com/best-ultra-short-throw-projectors.htm [projectorcentral.com]
https://www.projectorcentral.com/Optoma-CinemaX_P2.htm [projectorcentral.com]
These used to be like $15,000 not so long ago, now they seem to have dropped to around $3,000.
[SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
(Score: 3, Touché) by meustrus on Wednesday December 09 2020, @03:20PM (1 child)
"besides Democrat governors"? You act like it's only the politicians that take COVID seriously. 81 million Americans voted to elect Joe Biden president, and I'll bet hardly any of them are going to the movie theater even in states with Republican governors. Which by the way have started enforcing social distancing in their states now that the election is over and there's no more political advantage to be gained by pretending their constituents aren't dying by the thousands.
There is definitely one side of politics where the politicians get to dictate what the followers believe, but it isn't Democrats.
(on topic: you answered your own question with "Of course they would have to show something sufficiently interesting" ≖◡≖)
If there isn't at least one reference or primary source, it's not +1 Informative. Maybe the underused +1 Interesting?
(Score: -1, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday December 09 2020, @05:36PM
How many of those 81 million supposed Americans have only ever lived in a suitcase under a table?
(Score: 2) by cmdrklarg on Wednesday December 09 2020, @04:33PM
I watched it, as it looked interesting... it was quite a spectacle but it got past my suspension of disbelief unfortunately.
Answer now is don't give in; aim for a new tomorrow.