Ted Sarandos on Trump, ‘Trans Ideology’ Remarks, ‘Boots’ Cancellation

On the red carpet for the DGA Awards Saturday night, Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos addressed the proposed Netflix-Warner Bros. merger and President Donald Trump’s possible role in the deal.

Asked by Variety‘s Marc Malkin if it makes him nervous when the president says he’s watching the deal, Sarandos answered, “Look, I think he has a keen interest in the entertainment business.”

“He knows about the entertainment business, and he really does care about the health of the industry, the American industry generally, but I think particularly the entertainment industry,” Sarandos continued.

However, Sarandos said on the carpet, “He’s made no indication that he’s going to do anything or be involved in any way that’s improper. This is the DOJ’s deal.”

Trump, in an interview with NBC News this week, said he will not be personally involved in reviewing the Netflix-WB deal (after previously saying he would be). “I’ve decided I shouldn’t be involved,” Trump told NBC News. “The Justice Department will handle it.”

Sarandos testified before a Senate subcommittee on Tuesday, and was adamant in his testimony that the deal would be good for consumers.

“Maybe, folks don’t quite understand is just how competitive the marketplace is, for where to put your project or where consumers are gonna watch it, and it’s never been more competitive.

“It’s a really Wild West landscape right now, and this idea that there’s this concentration risk in our deal is ludicrous when you’ve got one player, YouTube, which is already 15% of TV time and growing.”

He characterized it as “fantasy world” to not consider YouTube as a major TV competitor. “We are 9% of the TV business,” he said, referring to Netflix. “We get HBO and we grow to 10%. That is not an antitrust problem.”

Sarandos continues to insist that Netflix intends to preserve a robust theatrical window for Warner Bros. films. “We’re going to nurture Warner Brothers and HBO and Warner Brothers Television and make those great brands even better for the next century,” he told Variety.

The Netflix chief called it “ludicrous” that one senator claimed that 50% of the children’s content on Netflix had “trans ideology.” Netflix has something for everybody, Sarandos said, and viewers can block any content that offends them by title, which he says is unique to the streamer.

When asked if there was any truth to the idea that the Department of War had an influence on the cancelation of Netflix’s “Boots,” Sarandos said “Absolutely not.”

“These are all business decisions based on audience relative to the cost of the show. Do the people who push play watch it to the end? Do they give it a couple of thumbs up? Does it keep growing? All of those,” Sarandos explained.

“That’s the best part about the internet, about our business, is that people really love the product and it’s heartbreaking to cancel any show ever, particularly a show that Norman Lear brought to me. It was his last show. I’m a fan,” said Sarandos.