Jeff Bewkes Walks Back Netflix-Albanian Army Dig After Streamer Wins WBD Bidding War: ‘An Unfortunate Flippant Remark’

Following word of Netflix’s winning bid for Warner Bros. Discovery, Jeff Bewkes, the former CEO of Time Warner, admitted he was mistaken when he dismissed the streamer as a threat 15 years ago.

The business executive addressed his now-viral quote — in which he compared Netflix to the Albanian army trying to take over the world — with the Wall Street Journal on Friday.

“It was 2010 just after we spun off the disaster of AOL, and that was an unfortunate flippant remark because I didn’t want to admit how big a threat Netflix streaming really was,” Bewkes told the outlet. “We were the first and only to offer Comcast and all our cable and satellite distributors in demand and broadband rights for free … but when none of them took us up on it, we knew the basic channels were doomed and that’s why we were the first to exit.”

Bewkes’ walk back comes after his 2010 comments resurfaced online amid the Netflix-WBD mega-deal, with many calling the business move “ironic” given his past remarks.

Specifically, when asked in 2010 if the streamer was a threat, Bewkes told the New York Times, in a article titled, “Time Warner Views Netflix as a Fading Star,” “It’s a little bit like, is the Albanian army going to take over the world? I don’t think so.”

Fast forward nearly 15-years to the day, Netflix emerged the winner in the Warner Bros. Discovery bidding war after offering $27.75 a share for the studio and streaming assets.

However, the deal has already faced an immense amount of pushback from those in the industry. The Producers Guild of America, SAG-AFTRA, Teamsters and the WGA all have expressed concern regarding the acquisition.

Jane Fonda, on behalf of the Committee for the First Amendment, even denounced the deal as a “constitutional crisis” that could destroy Hollywood.

However, on Friday, Netflix said it expects “to maintain Warner Bros.’ current operations and build on its strengths,” including theatrical releases for films. Additionally, WBD CEO David Zaslav told employees in a town hall that the streamer plans “to keep most people.”

“They don’t have a lot; they don’t have a motion picture studio, they don’t have a big gaming business,” he added. “And so the fit feels very good for our employees.”

The post Jeff Bewkes Walks Back Netflix-Albanian Army Dig After Streamer Wins WBD Bidding War: ‘An Unfortunate Flippant Remark’ appeared first on TheWrap.