It remains unclear when it will be possible for the theatrical movie-going experience to return to normal, so I thought it was a smart move when Warner Bros. announced that they'll be releasing their entire 2021 slate to HBO Max the same day the films reach whatever theatres may be open at the time. Apparently one of their major collaborators wasn't so pleased with the announcement. Deadline reports that Legendary Entertainment, the production company behind the Warner Bros. releases Dune and Godzilla vs. Kong, was upset by the HBO Max plan. Legendary
either has or will send legal letters to Warner Bros as soon as today, challenging the decision to put the Denis Villenueve-directed Dune into the HBO Max deal, and maybe Godzilla vs Kong as well. On the latter, Legendary reportedly had Netflix ready to pull the film from Warner Bros for around $250 million, before WarnerMedia blocked it. Sources said Legendary had no advance notice before last week’s announcement that both Dune and Godzilla vs. Kong were part of the HBO Max plan.
Legendary certainly seems to have the right to challenge WarnerMedia on its decision: Legendary and its partners provided 75% of the $165 million or so net budget of Dune, the adaptation of the Frank Herbert novel that was envisioned to be the first of multiple films exploiting the six-novel series. It put up a similar amount of the funding on the Godzilla vs. King film. Will the long-term viability of the franchises be tarnished by starting out as an HBO Max offering? It’s the same question the industry is asking about Wonder Woman. Legendary wouldn’t comment.
Deadline's Mike Fleming Jr. said,
I’ve spoken to numerous deal-makers with skin in the game here, and none were happy. They understood Warner Bros was in a tough spot; movies on a shelf accumulating interest costs (though interest is low right now), and the likelihood of half a year or more of the kind of paltry attendance that hobbled the studio’s Christopher Nolan film Tenet, before the theatrical market comes back with a glut of product. But a vaccine is just around the corner, and some said they were upset that Warner Bros announced a full year of movies to HBO Max, instead of leaving open the possibility the experiment would end if movie going rebounds after a vaccine eradicates the pandemic. They believe it was to make a statement to Wall Street about the overriding importance of HBO Max subs.
My interest in Dune is low, but I am very anxious to see Godzilla vs. Kong, so I was glad to hear that it's part of the HBO Max plan. I won't be going to any theatres until the pandemic is under control, and the HBO Max approach will allow viewers like me to see the movie as soon as possible – at the same time viewers who are willing to go to theatres get to see it. (Legendary's idea to hand the movie over to Netflix would have been even more convenient for me, since I already have a Netflix subscription and haven't signed up for HBO Max yet, but I'll take what I can get.)
Hopefully WB and Legendary will be able to come to an agreement that will still allow Dune and Godzilla vs. Kong to reach HBO Max on the theatrical release dates. As of right now, those dates are October 1, 2021 for Dune and May 21, 2021 for Godzilla vs. Kong.