Warner’s Straight To HBO Max Movie Deal Rattles Christopher Nolan After 'Tenet' Struggles

Christopher Nolan has criticized the move made by WarnerMedia to send 17 films directly to theaters and HBO Max in 2021, saying the plan makes "no economic sense." His upset comes as his latest movie release, "Tenet," has seen its fair share of struggles at the box office.

During its opening run in the U.S. and Canada, the film saw around $9.4 million in ticket sales. Initially, the studio claimed the film had a $20 million opener, but later divulged the numbers included August previews for the film. This figure saw a substantial drop to $6.7 million in sales in its second week, down 29%, CNBC reported.

To date, the film has grossed over $359 million worldwide and $57.6 million in the U.S. The production budget for the film was around $200 million. To break even, ScreenRant reports “Tenet” needs to gross $500 million – a tall order during a pandemic.

The summer debut of “Tenet” came after it was pushed off several times due to the pandemic. The film found itself off to a sluggish start in the U.S. as many theaters remained closed because of the coronavirus pandemic.

While his own project is facing its share of struggles, Nolan was quick to criticize Warner for its decision to send its films to HBO Max.

Nolan told The Hollywood Reporter about the decision, “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.”

He 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.”

Nolan has a relationship with Warner Bros. that dates back to 2002 when he released “Insomnia,” which earned $113 million at the worldwide box office.

Nolan, who has a net worth of $250 million, according to Celebrity Net Worth, has released a slew of films with Warner since, including the resurrection of the “Batman” franchise with “The Dark Knight” – a $1 billion blockbuster.

To Nolan’s credit, Warner’s HBO Max streaming service has a meager 8.6 million active subscribers.