The true cost of Warner Bros. selling its soul to Netflix

For more than a century, the studio has developed era-defining films and allowed space for artists to create

- CHRIS YOGERST

WITH THE tech takeover of Hollywood coming fast, legacy film studios now face an existential crisis.

Paramount was swallowed by Skydance during a months-long $8 billion merger finalized in August. Warner Bros. is next, but this time the stakes may be higher.

With Netflix winning the bidding war for Warner Bros. Discovery — agreeing to pay more than $82 billion for its historic film and TV library, Burbank studios and HBO distribution stream, among other assets — the discussion has largely been focused on regulatory hurdles, stock prices, debt structure, layoffs and release strategies. The Directors Guild of America has already announced its intentions to meet with Netflix about the acquisition and what it means for theatrical distribution, while the Writers Guild of America has called for the merger to be “blocked” and Paramount has launched accusations of foul play amid the bidding process.

Missing from the discussion, however, is the cultural value of the studio's history for developing challenging, era-defining films, consistently pushing for innovation in the filmmaking and distribution processes and for creating space for artists to explore their creativity.

For many, the Warner Bros. shield is more than a logo; it has stood across decades as a symbol of courage throughout the industry. The studio was founded in 1923 by four Jewish immigrants — brothers Harry, Jack, Sam and Albert — who believed movies could do much more than print money and entertain audiences. The studio leveraged both its assets and reputation to bring synchronized sound to film in the late 1920s, and developed larger-than-life stars from James Cagney and Humphrey Bogart to Ingrid Bergman and Bette Davis.