Ted Sarandos says Barbenheimer would have been “just as big” on Netflix

Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos recently said in an interview with the New York Times that the 2023 blockbusters “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer” had “as big an audience” on the streamer as they did in theaters.

When discussing what kind of content isn't right for Netflix, Sarandos said, “I don't think there's a clear answer to that, because the best version of something can work really well for Netflix, but it just hasn't worked so far. There are some obvious reasons, like we don't do breaking news and things like that, because I think there are a lot of other ways to do that. People don't expect that from us.”

The NYT reporter then pointed to the theatrical releases of “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer,” both of which were impressive box office hits and spawned the cultural phenomenon that was “Barbenheimer.” (Warner Bros.' “Barbie” grossed $1.44 billion worldwide, while Universal's “Oppenheimer” grossed $951 million.)

“Are there things that you feel are not your area of ​​expertise at the moment?” the reporter asked.

“Both films would have been great for Netflix,” Sarandos said of “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer.” “They definitely would have had just as big an audience on Netflix.”

He continued: “And that's why I don't think there's any reason to believe that certain kinds of movies work or don't work. There's no reason to believe that the movie itself is better for all people on any screen size. My son is an editor. He's 28 years old and he watched 'Lawrence of Arabia' on his phone.”

In January this year, Sarandos said Netflix had no plans to change its “strategy or mix [of licensed and original films]“ following Scott Stuber’s departure as film chairman. According to the co-CEO, Netflix’s original films “attract some of the largest audiences in the world.”

“It's always going to be that kind of mix of first window, second window and extensive catalog,” Sarandos added. “We believe that formula works best to entertain the world.”