Warner Bros announce all 2021 films will go to HBO Max in US. What does this mean for The UK & The Future of Cinema? 

Huge news came out of Hollywood a few nights ago that in 2021 Warner Bros one of the biggest film companies in the world will be releasing all their new films onto their streaming service HBO Max on the same day they are released in the cinemas. Obviously, this has caused much debate and discussion amongst people and here I am lending my opinion to the news. 

Will not be the same for The UK - Yet 

Now HBO Max is a US streaming service which isn't available here in The UK, in terms of TV shows, Sky Atlantic has been the main source on these shores, but in terms of films there haven't been too many. The biggest example is Wonder Woman 1984, in The US the film will be following the approach described above but The UK is only releasing the film in the cinemas and then onto PVOD in January. I think this is what The UK will do in the future, I believe that the window between films being in the cinema to being available at home will be shorter but not on the same day, unless something drastically changes. 

Will affect Big Blockbusters 

The biggest films that have been affected by this news are The Matrix 4, The Suicide Squad, Godzilla vs Kong, Mortal Kombat & Dune. Now in all these films case I truly believe this will harm the viewing experience, these films are going to be large and huge on scale, go back and watch the Dune trailer and you will see what I mean. Nobody should experience that for the first time at home on their TV, no matter how big it is, it should be enjoyed and appreciated in a big cinema with the largest screen possible.

Will help smaller films 

But then for me here is the positive, is that some smaller films which people wouldn't bother to go to the cinema to watch might be given a chance. I mean look this year at the numbers Netflix are producing for films that wouldn't have been seen had they been in a cinema, so if handled correctly this news could help smaller films in the future to get exposure and maybe more money. 

Cinema attendance will lower, which could lead to catastrophe

I think if you ask the majority of people, whether they would go to the cinema or stay at home to watch a film they would pick the latter, the rise in streaming the last few years shows that. This means that with these huge films coming to home viewing, less people will be going to the cinemas which means less attendance which obviously means less money. I understand both sides of the argument but especially when the pandemic is over, I hope people go to the cinema at least to see Blockbusters in order to give them a greater chance to survive. 

Overall

Overall, I kind of understand Warner Bros decision here, after the year we have had, it could be seen as a safe move. But I think what they haven't looked at, is if this is a somewhat success then more companies might come up with this strategy which could lead to the downfall of Cinema that we all love.