Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos made the statement when answering questions at the Time100 Summit|New Republic|CC BY-NC 2.0
Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos called Hollywood’s idea of making movies for the theaters an “outdated concept” when answering questions at the Time100 Summit this week.
He criticized the struggling box office and explained why Netflix is thriving while traditional studios face challenges. Sarandos emphasized that viewers are signaling a preference for watching movies at home.
When asked, “Have you destroyed Hollywood?” Sarandos retorted, “No, we’re saving it.”
He also urged filmmakers to focus on audiences, not nostalgia for going to movie theaters.
However, Netflix doesn’t completely avoid the theater business. It owns two historic venues—the Bay Theater in Los Angeles and the Paris Theater in New York—which Sarandos says were preserved for the experience, not for the sake of the industry.