Netflix CEO Says Movie Theaters Are Dead
44 comments
·April 1, 2025mingus88
todd3834
That's now how I use Netflix. I watch when I'm in the sauna and I've been on my phone long enough that I start to worry it will start overheating. Then I set up phone up outside the glass and Netflix gets my undivided attention. There are still so many great movies and tv shows on Netflix.
bookaway
>Netflix is what you put on while you are doing other things.
Yeah, I watch all films I consider worth seeing in the theater frankly. I rarely have nightmarishly disruptive movie going experiences. Any disruptions are minuscule compared to the infinite attention distractions at home or on any viewing portal connected to the internet.
And sometimes I go specifically for the rowdy crowd experience. For example, watching Grand Theft Hamlet with a appreciative (and somewhat drunk) rowdy crowd in the theater was fucking fantastic. Ironically, someone in Riot Games, the company that decided to stream Arcane on Netflix, also knew this very well when they rented movie theaters across the world and had screening events ahead of official Netflix release dates for episodes from the the latest Arcane season -- for an audience mostly composed of ballistic League of Legend cosplaying gen Zs and alphas.
m463
> infinite attention distractions
Watching with someone else, the distractions are ∞²
aurareturn
So sure, movie theaters might be dead, but they share a grave with Netflix.
mingus88
The word for this is enshittification
The service has become increasingly poor and the prices climb. This is the phase of Netflix’s lifecycle where all the value is being extracted from the customers and given to the shareholders.
They hiked us up to $25/mo only to nag me every time I launched it that I can’t let my brother use one of the four device entitlements that I am paying for.
Top dollar hostility for second run movies, cancelled series, and AI driven true crime slop.
aurareturn
They're pretty far from being in a grave.
dzink
The plot lines are dead. Hollywood has zero originality in plots lately. They think consumers go to theaters to see special effects on a big screen, but the reality is the more special effects a movie has the more dull to non-existent the plot is.
Brajeshwar
Special effects when done right make the movie a lot more watchable. There is a decade-old movie (besides many others), Oblivion, which I can re-watch repeatedly. The effects there seem to have been done with the right purpose and meaning. Of course, there are a lot more but this is the one I remember from my recent re-watch.
magicalhippo
Agree on Oblivion, also like it a lot and rewatch it from time to time.
Saw The Abyss[1] at the big screen recently, and that too held up very well in terms of special effects, despite being 35 years old and breaking CGI ground when it was released.
dayvid
Matt Damon had the best explanation: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gF6K2IxC9O8&pp=ygUibWF0dCBkY...
aurareturn
I think research shows that this is the opposite. People reserve going to the movie theater for big expensive releases. They get "plot line" shows and movies for a low fee on Netflix or free on some streaming service.
atonse
Oversaturation of unoriginal movies and sequels coupled with insanely overpriced tickets and concessions. A huge shock.
It costs us (family of 4) nearly $100 to go the movies. And that’s not even counting a meal (only snacks)
Or, we can spend $20 buying the movie (or $4 renting it), watch it on 4K OLED on our couches, pause whenever we want, etc, and have a nice dinner for less.
bb88
Or just wait until it comes out on a streamer, and you'll enjoy it just as much with delicious Costco popcorn that costs around 30 cents per microwave packet. You can see if the hubbub about the movie was really worth it.
Oh, and if you want more popcorn, that's another 30 cents.
And you can pause it if you want to use your own private restroom.
And if it's a terrible movie you don't feel guilty if you leave the theater.
Also you can drink beer while watching a movie, if you're into that kinda thing.
Also you don't have to deal with teens on phones texting each other about how good or bad the movie is, or trying to take calls in the middle of the theater.
Or parents with screaming children that didn't want to afford a babysitter.
Or ...
Or ...
There was a time when movies were revered -- back when motion pictures came out, and it was a shared social experience, and people actually cared about it. People dressed up. There were ushers in uniforms.
~20 years ago when I saw one of the matrix sequels in a theater in Chicago, the popcorn was no longer freshly popped. It was stored in plastic trash bags, and then opened and poured out into the popcorn machines. It tasted like the bags it was stored in.
fracus
Why would I want to watch a film with strangers sitting near me when I can get a more comfortable and cheaper experience at home. I don't have to hear some cow mowing down their popcorn, or worry about the coughing sick person behind me, or any number of things that have ruined an movie experience.
mmmBacon
I went to see Dune 2 in the theater. Something called Cinema X I think that projected on the walls of the theater. For a panoramic landscape like in Dune 2 it was a visual experience you can’t get at home. There’s still a place for theaters if Hollywood produces the content.
geenat
True or not, this is like the energy drink salesman saying coffee is dead.
danielrhodes
Maybe it’s because the movies aren’t good and the plot lines are stale. Just a thought.
nobodywasishere
There've been some really good not-sequel-remake-franchise movies recently though, recently watching Companions and Mickey 17 in theatres myself.
magicalhippo
Took my SO to see Companion. We had the whole room to ourselves. Both loved it sbd had a great time.
Also recently saw and really enjoyed Strange Darling and Flow on the big screen.
m463
I think there are plenty of movies that aren't remake-of-a-copy-of-a-sequel out there. I recall I liked Didi.
I also think a lot of people have a better experience at the movies. The movie gets watched straight through. It isn't abandoned, stopped to get snacks, or text, or take a phone call. If someone keeps falling asleep, you don't rewind 10 times. If the movie starts out too slow or subtle, you keep going instead of scrolling to find another movie. etc.
bb88
Before recently movies were shared experiences. A good crowd made a great movie on a great screen even greater. Now movies are kind of singular experience. The only movies that still maybe fit this bill are the horror movies that draw in the teenager crowds -- but then it's more about how gory is it rather than plot, character, acting, direction, etc. Or maybe how cheap they can make the movie while still being able to market seats.
To be fair, Hollywood has always had this kind of problem -- just watch a few Mystery Science Theater 3000s to see how bad things can get -- or 1994's "Ed Wood" from Tim Burton. Both of which still romanticize the industry in their own way.
There will never, ever, be anything like seeing the original Star Wars, Indiana Jones, Back to the Future, or Ghostbusters (peak Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Ivan Reitman) in the crowded theater filled with anticipating viewers ever again. Laughing as part of a crowd feels better than laughing alone.
Maybe we're too fragmented as society to enjoy all the same movie that we used to. I don't think this is true, because we all still like Ghostbusters, more or less. I think Hollywood has targeted markets, rather than trying to sell a movie to the masses.
And in 2024 they best thing Hollywood could do is reboot a 1980's TV Show "The Fall Guy". Geesh.
jakubmazanec
Movie theaters aren't dead - maybe multiplexes playing nothing than the same regurgitated soulless IPs are, but I love going to our local single-screen cinema, because they have a good programming: not only blockbusters; also old movies instead of just contemporary, new stuff. When I'm watching classics like Blade Runner for the first time on a big screen, it's much better experience (it helps they have beer on tap I can drink while watching, and the tickets cost half than in the nearby multiplex) than watching at home .
xnx
This is mainly to steal attention from Amazon in this news cycle.
"Amazon’s New Movie Strategy Starts With Theaters: The streaming giant is planning to release at least 14 movies a year in theaters around the country, rivaling other major studios."
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/01/business/media/amazon-mov...
nipperkinfeet
I can see that. Almost all of the cinemas in my region have closed or are closing. I haven't gone to the movies since 2012. I'd rather watch movies at home.
dheerkt
This is the non-AI version of an AI CEO saying programmers will not exist in 5 years.
Netflix is what you put on while you are doing other things. That’s not a criticism, really, that’s their product focus
https://www.dexerto.com/tv-movies/netflix-backlash-casual-vi...
I had been a Netflix subscriber since the days of DVDs by mail and finally cancelled last month. It’s not worth +$20/mo for casual viewing. And they have a bad track record of cancelling shows I actually liked and promoting hallmark quality programs instead.
I don’t think much needs to be said about movie theaters. When most shows are remakes, sequels, superhero movies or other franchises, it’s all so tired.
So sure, movie theaters might be dead, but they share a grave with Netflix.