Hollywood filmmaker James Cameron recently penned a letter to American Senator Mike Lee, warning that Netflix’s acquisition of Warner Bros. will be “disastrous” as it could cause massive loss to jobs, the theatrical industry and the film export business.
As per a Variety report, the Avatar director sent the letter to Senator Mike Lee, chair of the Senate subcommittee on antitrust, last week. It was recently obtained by CNBC.
“I believe strongly that the proposed sale of Warner Brothers Discovery to Netflix will be disastrous for the theatrical motion picture business that I have dedicated my life’s work to,” Cameron wrote in the letter. “Of course, my films all play in the downstream video markets as well, but my first love is the cinema,” the 71-year-old filmmaker wrote in his letter.
The Canadian filmmaker went on to predict, “Theaters will close. Fewer films will be made. The job losses will spiral,” if the number of big-budget films like the ones he makes reduces.
“The business model of Netflix is directly at odds with the theatrical film production and exhibition business, which employs hundreds of thousands of Americans,” Cameron wrote. “It is therefore directly at odds with the business model of the Warner Brothers movie division, one of the few remaining major movie studios.”
In his response, Lee said, “We have received outreach from actors, directors, and other interested parties about the proposed Netflix and Warner Brothers merger, and I share many of their concerns. I look forward to holding a follow-up hearing to further address these issues.”
Cameron also said that the Netflix-Warner merger will lead to the exports of Hollywood films to suffer. “The U.S. may no longer lead in auto or steel manufacturing, but it is still the world leader in movies. That will change for the worse,” he added.
Last year, Netflix proposed to acquire key parts of Warner Bros. Discovery—including the studio, HBO, HBO Max, and major IP like DC Comics—for roughly USD 82.7 billion.
Announced in December 2025, the deal is currently undergoing regulatory scrutiny, with Warner separating its linear cable networks before the merger.