Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos is not happy with James Cameron’s letter against the streaming platform over its bid to acquire Warner Bros studio and terming it “disastrous”. Pushing back against the remarks, Sarandos said he was “surprised and disappointed” that Cameron chose to align with what he described as a disinformation campaign surrounding the proposed deal.
Ted Sarandos hits back at James Cameron
Sarandos addressed Cameron’s remarks in a letter penned to Republican Senator Mike Lee of Utah, who chairs the Senate’s subcommittee on antitrust. He mentioned that an earlier letter from the director “knowingly misrepresents our position and commitment to the theatrical release of Warner Bros. films.”
Sarandos’ letter follows an earlier note to Lee from Cameron, who said the sale of Warner Bros.’ film studio and streaming service to Netflix “will be disastrous for the theatrical motion picture business that I have dedicated my life’s work to.”
“I recently read the letter that James Cameron sent you about our deal to acquire Warner Bros. studios and HBO from Warner Bros. Discovery — and specifically the impact he believes it will have on theaters. I respect Mr. Cameron enormously and I love his work. But his letter to you knowingly misrepresents our position and commitment to the theatrical release of Warner Bros. films,” Sarandos wrote in the letter.
He continued, “When you and I met — and again when I testified under oath before the subcommittee — I clearly said that we will continue to release Warner Bros. films in theaters with a 45-day exclusive window, exactly as they are today. This is not a tentative goal or a flexible guideline; its a hard number and a firm commitment. I said the same thing to Mr. Cameron when we met on December 20, 2025, shortly after we announced our agreement to acquire Warner Bros. During that meeting we talked about Netflix’s plans for Warner Bros., including our 45-day commitment. Mr. Cameron was very supportive. If anything, he was more excited to talk about the at-home movie viewing glasses he is developing with Meta than exclusive windows for theatrical movies.”
“Mr. Cameron’s letter does not reflect any of this. He incorrectly suggests that we’ve only pledged a17-day window instead of a 45-day one, fails to correctly describe the deal Netflix has reached and ignores the serious consequences for the industry if Paramount Skydance’s proposal is accepted,” he added.
The Netflix CEO also spoke to Fox Business about the matter, saying, “I’m particularly surprised and disappointed that James chose to be part of the Paramount disinformation campaign that’s been going on for months about this deal.”
Sarandos mentioned that he was “surprised by the letter”, saying, “ have talked about that commitment in the press, countless times. I swore under oath in front of the Senate subcommittee on antitrust that that’s what we were doing.”
What did James Cameron say
In a letter to Senator Mike Lee, James Cameron wrote against Netflix’s planned acquisition of Warner Bros. Cameron, the man behind blockbusters such as Avatar, Titanic, and The Terminator, said that the acquisition would be ‘disastrous’ for the movie business.
“I believe strongly that the proposed sale of Warner Brothers Discovery to Netflix will be disastrous for the theatrical motion picture business that I have dedicated my life’s work to. Of course, my films all play in the downstream video markets as well, but my first love is the cinema,” Cameron wrote in the letter, as quoted by Variety.
“Theaters will close. Fewer films will be made. The job losses will spiral,” the filmmaker warned in the letter, adding, “The business model of Netflix is directly at odds with the theatrical film production and exhibition business, which employs hundreds of thousands of Americans. It is therefore directly at odds with the business model of the Warner Brothers movie division, one of the few remaining major movie studios.”
The filmmaker also shared that the US may no longer “lead in auto or steel manufacturing, but it is still the world leader in movies. That will change for the worse”.
Last year, Netflix announced that it would acquire Warner Bros., including its film and television studios, HBO Max and HBO. At that time, it was revealed that the cash and stock transaction was valued at $27.75 per WBD share, along with a total enterprise value of approximately $82.7 billion (equity value of $72.0 billion). Since the announcement, Netflix has been active in addressing concerns around the deal.
