Christopher Nolan, the director behind smash hit films like Inception and The Dark Knight, has spoken out about the decision from Warner Bros. to release its 2021 slate on HBO Max the same day as theaters.

Why Is Christopher Nolan Upset About HBO Max?

After being delayed multiple times due to the coronavirus pandemic, Warner Bros. recently announced that Wonder Woman 1984 would be streaming on HBO Max the same day it releases in US theaters.

Warner Bros. is HBO Max's parent company, meaning there was no expensive deal to bring Wonder Woman 1984 to the platform---though some reports claim that director Paddy Jenkins and star Gal Godot received large pay outs to support the decision.

Not long after, Warner Bros. then announced that its entire 2021 line-up, consisting of 17 films like The Suicide Squad, The Matrix 4, and Dune, would debut simultaneously in theaters and HBO Max.

The move was seen as a huge boom for the streaming industry, but a massive knock to traditional theaters. Now, Christopher Nolan has spoken to The Hollywood Reporter to weigh in:

Some of our industry’s biggest filmmakers and most important movie stars went to bed the night before thinking they were working for the greatest movie studio and woke up to find out they were working for the worst streaming service.

Nolan's epic Tenet film released in US theaters in September 2020 to less-than-ideal performance, but the director insisted it had a traditional release. It seems Warner Bros. felt the experiment didn't pay off.

Nolan continued:

Warner Bros. had an incredible machine for getting a filmmaker’s work out everywhere, both in theaters and in the home, and they are dismantling it as we speak. They don’t even understand what they’re losing. Their decision makes no economic sense, and even the most casual Wall Street investor can see the difference between disruption and dysfunction.

Will Streaming Services Replace Theater?

The impact of COVID-19 on the world cannot be overstated. For the entertainment industry, theaters across the globe have had to close their doors. Many of them would have been hoping on some return to normality in 2021.

This move from Warner Bros. puts question marks around that. Already a struggling business, it's unclear how theaters can survive when against the convenience of streaming services. Has this sped up their demise? Or will it force them to radically alter their proposition?

Netflix has nearly 200 million subscribers and is able to hire big-name talent to produce exclusive content for the platform. Amazon Prime Video is believed to have around 150 million subscribers. Now, HBO Max can boast Hollywood titles direct to your TV, all for a reasonable monthly cost.

It's going to be fascinating to see how the industry react to Warner Bros.' decision and whether studios like Disney will respond in equal for Disney+.

HBO Max Has No Free Trial

If you were hoping you could sign up to a free trial of HBO Max to watch all these new films, think again. The service has removed its free trials and you will need to subscribe if you want to access any of its content.