James Cameron Sounds Alarm Over Netflix-Warner Bros. Deal, Backs Paramount

Why It Matters

The deal could reshape the distribution landscape, reducing theater attendance and consolidating content power, which would impact revenues, employment, and creative diversity across Hollywood.

Key Takeaways

• Cameron opposes Netflix's potential Warner Bros. acquisition.
• He warns of theater job losses.
• Deal could cut Warner Bros. theatrical releases.
• Cameron backs Paramount as preferable buyer.
• Antitrust monopsony risk threatens creators and talent.

Pulse Analysis

The proposed sale of Warner Bros. Discovery to Netflix marks the latest wave of vertical integration in an industry already dominated by a handful of streaming giants. Netflix, which has spent billions on original content, sees ownership of a major studio as a way to secure a steady pipeline of high‑budget titles and reduce reliance on third‑party licensing. Regulators have flagged the transaction because it could give the platform unprecedented control over both production and distribution, raising classic antitrust red‑flag questions about market concentration and potential monopsony power over creators.

Cameron’s warning focuses on the downstream effects for the theatrical ecosystem. Warner Bros. typically releases about fifteen films a year in cinemas, supporting thousands of theater employees, independent exhibitors, and ancillary services such as visual‑effects houses and marketing firms. A shift toward streaming‑first releases would likely shrink that slate, accelerating theater closures and triggering a cascade of job losses. The director argues that Netflix’s business model, which prioritizes subscription growth over box‑office revenue, is fundamentally at odds with the economics that keep large‑scale exhibition viable.

By endorsing Paramount’s competing bid, Cameron signals that an independent studio owner could preserve the traditional release window and maintain a healthier balance between streaming and theatrical revenue streams. If regulators block the Netflix deal on antitrust grounds, the industry may see a clearer separation between content creation and platform distribution, protecting competition and creative diversity. Conversely, approval could set a precedent for further studio‑to‑streamer mergers, reshaping how audiences access new releases and potentially redefining the role of movie theaters in the digital age.

James Cameron Sounds Alarm Over Netflix-Warner Bros. Deal, Backs Paramount

James Cameron Sounds Alarm Over Netflix‑Warner Bros. Deal, Backs Paramount · By Winston Cho · February 19, 2026 4:36 pm

Image: James Cameron attends the world premiere of 20th Century Studios “Avatar: Fire and Ash” at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, California (Dec. 1, 2025).

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James Cameron is going to bat for Paramount in the bidding war for Warner Bros. Discovery.

In a letter sent to Sen. Mike Lee (R‑Utah), Cameron argues that allowing Netflix to purchase the studio would deal a disastrous blow to movie theaters and weaken an essential cog of the Hollywood machinery, leading to substantial job losses.

The letter, dated Feb. 10, amplifies concerns from lawmakers and the Justice Department that the potential sale will result in fewer films being released in theaters. While the government’s main focus has been Netflix’s dominance in streaming, it’s also pressed Netflix on what will happen to Warner Bros. movies if it were to acquire the company.

Cameron nods to prior remarks from Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos calling movie theaters an “outdated concept” and an “outmoded idea.”

“The business model of Netflix is directly at odds with the theatrical film production and exhibition business, which employs hundreds of thousands of Americans,” he writes in the missive, first published by CNBC. “It is therefore directly at odds with the business model of the Warner Brothers movie division, one of the few remaining major movie studios.”

Warner Bros. releases roughly 15 movies per year in theaters. Cameron, and others in Hollywood, are concerned that Netflix will lower that figure. “It will be a blow to the exhibition community (theater owners and their tens of thousands of employees) at a critical time to have this production output redirected to streaming,” the letter states.

If movie theaters see less business, the entire industry will suffer, Cameron says. If tentpoles are “no longer green‑lit because the market contracts further,” he writes, “then many jobs will be lost.” He adds, “Theaters will close. Fewer films will be made. Service providers such as VFX companies will go out of business. The job losses will spiral.”

Testifying before the Senate subcommittee on antitrust earlier this month, Sarandos committed a 45‑day theatrical window when asked by lawmakers about the deal’s impact on theaters.

Cameron remains skeptical. He argues Netflix will likely change course in a few years since theatrical releases fundamentally clash with its business model. The letter states, “What are the teeth in the deal? What administrative body will hold them to task if they slowly sunset their so‑called commitment to theatrical releases? But once they own a major movie studio, that is irrevocable. That ship has sailed.”

Cameron also says the pledge doesn’t mean anything unless Sarandos specifies the number of theaters where Warner Bros. movies will be displayed. “Netflix has done only a handful of theatrical releases, and only then under pressure from prestigious filmmakers,” he writes. “But these are usually in a token number of theaters, and are mostly done to qualify for Academy Awards. These releases do not represent the bread‑and‑butter of the exhibition business.”

Cameron positions Netflix acquiring Warner Bros. as a bad deal for both consumers, who will see fewer movies, and filmmakers, who will have fewer studio options for their projects. One avenue the government could pursue to block the deal is a monopsony theory—whether the combined company would have too much power over creators and talent.

“I am but a humble movie farmer,” Cameron writes. “And I see my future creativity and productivity directly threatened by this proposed sale.”

In an interview last year on The Town podcast, Cameron endorsed the David Ellison‑led company’s bid for Warner Bros.: “I think Paramount’s the best choice,” he said. “Netflix would be a disaster. Sorry, Ted, but geez. Sarandos has gone on the record saying theatrical films are dead. ‘Theatrical is dead.’”