Christopher Nolan Slams Warner Bros. Again Over HBO Max Decision, Calling It A Question Of Ethics

Warner Bros’ decision to release their 2021 slate of films in theaters and on their streaming platform HBO Max simultaneously caused a big wave of reactions from the film community, including a few directors who are at the helm of recent and future films at the studio. That included Tenet director Christopher Nolan, who previously revealed concerns and issues with the decision and perhaps more specifically the rollout of that decision and length of time WB is planning out in 2021. In a new interview with The Washington Post, Nolan was asked about the decision to move films in 2021 to HBO Max simultaneous release, why he decided to reveal his issues with it publicly, and his issues with the plan in general.

“It’s about what the French call droit moral,” Nolan said. “Do they own it absolutely, because they paid for it or they financed it? And that is not a purely legalistic question; it’s a question of ethics as well. It’s a question of partnership and collaboration. They did not speak to those filmmakers. They did not consult them about what their plans were for their work. And I felt that somebody needed to point out that that wasn’t the right way to treat those filmmakers.”

Nolan and other filmmakers seem frustrated by WB’s choice to make this decision without consulting the filmmakers behind these films and the theater chains who are most adversely affected by the movie.

“The studio needed to collaborate with the filmmakers on what was going to happen,” Nolan said. “They didn’t speak to the filmmakers, they didn’t speak to the theater chains. They didn’t speak to the production partners on the films. That was the reason I was speaking up. As far as the specific strategy of what you would be doing over the entirety of next year, I don’t know why anyone would be making predictions through to December of 2021 on what they should or shouldn’t be doing with the business. That seems a long way out in a fast changing, dynamic situation.”

As for Tenet and its release rollout, Nolan is behind the studio’s decision to release it in the summer months, especially from an international perspective.

“The studio made the decision to release the film in the summer in parts of the world where it was safe to open the film because of the response to the pandemic in those individual countries. And I think they made a good decision. . . . A lot of people got to see the film. A lot of people went back to work and all the rest and were able to safely do that,” Nolan said. “This country is a different story. But Hollywood filmmaking is a global business. It’s not an American-only business. And I think it’s very important for people to look beyond where they are sitting in the world and look at what’s going on in the rest of the world as well, and be mindful of that.”

Speaking of its theatrical release, Nolan was also asked if there was any way he could’ve halted a theatrical release if he wanted to, and the answer is a definitive no.

“Of course not. Look at what’s just happened. They’ve just unilaterally shifted their entire distribution pattern on their slate without talking to even the financing partners,” Nolan said.

Nolan and Tenet have seemed to always be the topic of discussion in regards to the greater industry as opposed to just about its content, and that is true once more with the release to DVD being somewhat overshadowed by WB’s massive movie rollout changes.

“Yes, it certainly would be nice to get back to being able to just put a film out there and promote the film in a more simple way, but the world’s been very complicated for 2020, and there are people dealing with the most appalling circumstances,” Nolan said. “I honestly just feel very, very lucky to have been working to get to a point where we can now have people in Los Angeles, New York, other places in North America see the film.”