Welcome back to the show! It’s Cristie here, back with Faith for the XYZ portion of the Wonder in the Weeds podcast. We’ve noticed lately that people seem to want to hear from both of us together, I guess I’m not enough of a “yapper” to do a solo show anyway.

Today, we decided to tackle something a little different: the news. Specifically, the confusing, high-stakes drama surrounding the potential acquisition of Warner Brothers Discovery.

Full disclosure: neither of us are financial experts. Honestly, I find most of it pretty confusing. But whether it’s Netflix putting in a bid or Paramount Skydance attempting a hostile takeover, this merger has huge implications for how we all watch movies and TV

The Consumer vs. The Artist

We approached this conversation from two very different angles. Faith is looking at this as an emerging artist in the film and theater industry. I, on the other hand, am looking at it as a consumer who has loved the movie theater experience since I was a kid.

Here is what worries me: It feels like we are heading back to the days of “robber barons” and monopolies. When one giant company buys another giant company, it rarely feels like a good deal for the consumer. It usually means layoffs and higher prices, and it makes me sad to think that the traditional movie theater experience is struggling.

Faith brought up a great point about risk aversion. If studios are only focused on the bottom line, they stop taking risks on original stories. We end up with endless sequels and franchises because they are “safe bets,” making it incredibly hard for new artists to break through unless they are attached to massive names.

The Great Rewind: Why We Want Physical Media

One of the most interesting parts of our chat was realizing that we are accidentally reinventing the past. It feels like streaming services just want to become cable TV again.

We’ve reached a point where digital ownership feels flimsy. If Netflix decides to drop a show—like Gilmore Girls—it could just disappear. That is why we are seeing a shift, especially with the younger generation. My youngest son actually has a Blu-ray and CD collection now.

There is a real desire to actually own the music and movies we love so that a corporation can’t just decide to take them away from us. It turns out, Gen X might have been onto something with those DVD towers!

Our Wonders of the Week

We wrapped up the episode by trying to find a little light in the weeds.

• Faith’s Wonder: She rediscovered some music she loved as a college freshman. While the lyrics reminded her of being lonely back then, it gave her a nice moment of hindsight to realize how much she has grown and that things eventually turned out okay.+1
• My Wonder: I am officially embracing the Midwest winter!. When we moved here, everyone warned us about the cold and snow, but I’m refusing to hide inside. I went to an outdoor Christmas market in 12-degree weather, bought a coat for the dog, and I’m just getting out there. I can’t change the weather, so I might as well change my mindset.+4

Thanks for listening to us ramble about the state of Hollywood (and our dogs fighting in the background). If you have thoughts on the merger or if you’ve started buying DVDs again, let us know!