People see the rumoured $82.7 billion move by Netflix to buy Warner Bros. Discovery’s film and TV business and immediately panic about the future of movie theatres.
They imagine empty cinemas and a world where everything goes straight to streaming. Because Warner Bros. Discovery owns major theatrical franchises, speculation immediately sparked fears. But Kevin O’Leary does not buy that story.
Kevin O’Leary Says Movie Theatres Are Not Dead
Kevin O’Leary says the idea that this kind of deal would wipe out the concept of theatres is simply wrong and ill-conceived. In a recent post on X in late December, Kevin O’Leary said the real battle is not about screens or venues. It is about where people choose to place their attention.
Streaming services and theatres are not fighting each other so much as they are both trying to earn attention in a crowded world. With endless options pulling at viewers every day, the challenge is not where something is watched, but whether anyone chooses to watch it at all.
Kevin said, “People watch movies on their phones, their tablets, their home TVs, in theatres. There’s never been a more diversified way of screening content. The only restraining aspect of content consumption is how many hours people are awake.”
Kevin O’Leary Explains Why Cinemas Still Matter
O’Leary used Amazon as an easy example of why theatres are not going anywhere. He said Amazon keeps putting money into movies made for theatres because some experiences only work on a big screen. They need size, sound, and atmosphere.
You cannot recreate that feeling in a living room. He also pointed out that cinemas are investing in better tech. Large format screens and immersive audio, for example. They are leaning into what makes them special in the first place.
Mr. Wonderful elucidated on his point by saying, “Those experiences cannot be emulated in a home. If you’ve got a big-tent release, an action film, particularly, most people would want to see that on an adequate surround-sound, large-screen. You need every tool you can get in the media war.”
How Often Americans Really Go To The Movies Now
O’Leary may be confident that theatres will survive. But the viewing habits are ever-evolving. More people are choosing to watch new releases at home because it is easy and familiar.
An AP-NORC Centre for Public Affairs Research poll found that about 75% of U.S. adults streamed a new movie release at least once in the past year. That shows how streaming is winning on volume. Albeit theatres still continue to serve a different kind of grand experience.
Research from the AP-NORC Centre for Public Affairs Research shows that roughly two-thirds of Americans (about 66%) still visit a movie theatre at least occasionally. Only a much smaller group (around 16%) goes every month.
Balance Between Streaming and Theatres
The future probably sits somewhere between the couch and the cinema seat. Streaming has become the easy default, and the numbers show that clearly. Still, theatres offer something that home viewing cannot replace. They turn certain movies into events rather than background noise.
Streaming has become the easy, everyday choice. Theatres have become the place for something bigger and more deliberate. They are where people go when they want the full experience.
