With Warner Bros. announcing that their entire 2021 film slate will be opening on both theaters and on HBOMax simultaneously, the storm that followed has only got bigger. Christopher Nolan gave a scathing remark about the decision and multiple agents and managers of the popular stars who will be appearing on the 2021 film slate have gotten extremely angry on behalf of their clients. Legendary Pictures who apparently financed over 70 percent of ‘Dune’ and ‘Godzilla vs. Kong’ is said to be on the warpath and their executives are thinking about suing Warner Pictures over this development.
AMC Theaters have made 100 million USD, but have warned their investors that if they don’t get 750 million USD by the end of this year, the cinema chain will probably shut down half way through January of next year. This Warner Bros. announcement has only made it harder for them to recollect the money, according to AMC. AMC CEO Adam Aron was extremely angry when he heard about the decision – which was just one hour before WarnerMedia announced their decision publically.
‘Dune’ director Denis Villeneuve was already put out when the decision came out, and he has continued to express his displeasure by blasting both Warner Bros. and AT&T for the “Hijacking decision”. AT&T is trying to bear an astronomical debt of 150 billion USD, and after the failure of HBOMax’s launch, they are trying the 2021 slate’s mixed release so as to garner the audience’s attention and increase subscription rates. Actors Jason Mamoa and Josh Brolin who are part of the mammoth film production ‘Dune’ are backing their director, Villeneuve who wrote a scathing letter with regard to Warner Bros. decision.
There still hasn’t been much in the way of lawsuits, but if Warner Bros. doesn’t find a way around this landmine, the AT&T debt won’t be the only thing they will have to worry about in the long run.