The Netflix Movie That Won Over James Cameron

James Cameron praised a Netflix movie and worried about the death of movie theaters in the same breath. If that sentence feels a little contradictory, welcome to the modern film business.

What he said and where he said it

At the European premiere of 'Avatar: Fire and Ash,' Cameron sat down with Empire Magazine and vented about how audiences have shifted to streaming as their default. He said it is getting tougher for him to accept that so many people now just wait for whatever their platform serves up and watch at home.

'I'm concerned that cinema may cease to exist as we understand it or in the way that I grew up with it. And I don't want that to happen.'

That worry is exactly why he keeps making movies engineered for theaters. In his view, the big screen offers an experience you can't control or interrupt, the kind you surrender to. At home, you can pause, juggle other tasks, order food, or chat with friends. For Cameron, some films deserve undivided attention, and a theater is the only place that actually demands it.

The theater vs. the couch, according to Cameron

• Theatrical: one unbroken ride you can't pause; immersive, transportive, designed to take you somewhere
• At home: pause-friendly, multitasking-friendly, distraction-heavy (food, phones, conversations)

So... the Netflix pick?

Here's the curveball: even with all that, the Terminator director admitted he had fun with a recent streaming hit. Asked if anything lately captured that immersive feeling he chases, he said he liked 'K-pop Demon Hunters.' Yes, that title made me do a double take too, but that's the one he name-checked.

If that sounds odd coming from cinema's loudest big-screen evangelist, that's kind of the point. Cameron can still enjoy what's new and buzzy on streaming while also arguing that certain movies are built to be experienced in a dark room with no distractions. Two things can be true at once, even if the branding is messy.