Too Long; Didn't Read
Warner Brothers will release its entire 2021 slate of films simultaneously in movie theaters and on HBO Max, the streaming service owned by Warner Brothers parent WarnerMedia. HBO Max will become an essential distribution arm for 17 titles such as Dune, In the Heights, The Matrix 4, and The Suicide Squad. The studios were banking on saturating movie theaters, the dependable cash-cow distribution system for Old Hollywood. Now studios are forced to either delay the theatrical release of their films and hope for a rebound in theater attendance; or recoup some of their losses by selling the movie distribution rights to New Hollywood streaming platforms.