LAS VEGAS.- Paramount Skydance, in the midst of a negotiation to acquire the legendary Warner Bros. studio, assured movie theater owners this week that the merger will not harm the already diminished sector, but rather will give it a boost.
At CinemaCon, the film and entertainment industry’s annual convention, Paramount emphasized its commitment to the big screen in a promotional video directed by Jon M. Chu and narrated by Tom Cruise.
“The future is Paramount. And the future looks very good from here,” said Cruise, looking at Hollywood from the top of the water tower that symbolizes the company.
Shortly after, the firm’s chief executive, David Ellison, addressed fears of cuts to film production if the purchase goes through.
“I came here today because I wanted to see you all in the eyes and give you my word. Once we merge with Warner Bros. we are going to make a minimum of 30 films per year,” he stated, and guaranteed 45 days of exclusive screening in theaters before going to streaming.
But his message was received with caution.
“Disney said very similar things when it was acquiring 20th Century Fox,” Matthew Hoopfer of the Michigan-based Studio C cinema chain told AFP.
And “20th Century Fox was a big studio. They had about 10, 12 movies a year. I think in Disney’s presentation (this year) there were five or six movies,” he added.
Hoopfer warned that history showed that “it is not easy” to maintain the level of production when a company grows. “Will they continue to commit to 30 films if a few don’t respond the way they think they will? I’m skeptical,” he said.
“The elephant in the room”
Paramount Skydance plans to acquire the Warner Bros. Discovery outfit in a transaction valued at $110 billion, after beating Netflix in a tough bidding war.
The fight for Warner Bros. emerged just when the studio was going through a triumphant moment at the box office and critics.
His film “One Battle After Another” won the Oscar for best film this year. And another movie of his, Sinners, was the contender at the Academy Awards and throughout the rest of the season.
At CinemaCon, Warner Bros. avoided talking about the negotiation with Paramount, a silence that deepened the concern of some businessmen.
“The classic elephant in the room, no one wants to mention it,” said New York-based exhibitor Scott Treutlin, who appreciated that Paramount did.
Ellison “seemed sincere (…). Obviously you never know. But it’s a very bold thing to say and then back out,” he said.
More movies
The North American box office exceeded $11 billion per year several times over the past decade. But since the covid pandemic and the explosive expansion of streaming, it has not managed to reach 9 billion.
However, forecasts are good for 2026, which has already recorded a strong first quarter.
Optimism was palpable in the hallways of CinemaCon, where the same tune was heard: to have more audiences, you need to have more movies.
And this is precisely what the Paramount-Warner Bros. merger could threaten, warned Cinema United, the world’s main association of movie theater owners and operators.
Michael O’Leary, president of the union, said in a statement to AFP that Ellison’s presentation “was not sufficient” to address their concerns.
While exhibitors applaud what they seem to read as goodwill on Ellison’s part, they fear that the outside financing the purchase requires will complicate film production plans.
“With the amount of debt that this combined company is going to have, it will be an enormous challenge to meet that amount and still be able to maintain the capital requirements necessary to carry out 30 films,” said Bryan Sieve, president of Odyssey Cinemas in South Dakota.
“We hope they can make it,” he said.
Chance Crusenberry, owner of a historic drive-in theater in Virginia, agreed.
“If they want to be successful and they want us to be successful and keep the theaters open, they have to deliver,” he said.
