Penny Sherman

Are movie theaters dead, or is the big screen irreplaceable?

The theatrical window is the whole business model, and it collapsed. For decades the rule was roughly 90 days between cinema and home release, which gave theaters a real monopoly on newness. Now the standard deal is 17 to 45 days, and some titles hit streaming in three weeks. Every consumer has done this math: why pay twenty dollars per person plus parking when the same film lands on a service I already pay for before the month is out? Theaters aren't competing with streaming on experience anymore. They're competing on patience, and patience always loses. The [National Association of Theatre Owners](https://www.natoonline.org/) spent years begging studios to hold the window, and the studios walked away the moment streaming revenue looked bigger. That tells you everything about where the leverage went.

The 401k argument is underrated. Confiscate the top of the market and you're confiscating teachers' pensions too. The left never want to do that math out loud.

Politics · Oct 6, 2026 · Should billionaires be allowed to exist?

But the ads are not what keeps him legal; the app on his phone is. You can ban broadcast ads without banning the product. Nobody needs a parlay ad during the Super Bowl to find a sportsbook.

Sports · Sep 24, 2026 · Should sports betting advertisements be banned from live game broadcasts?

Or the digital questions ride along on the existing workflow for thirty extra seconds. Not every new screen needs a new appointment.

Lifestyle · Sep 23, 2026 · Should digital well-being support be treated like a routine public-health servic…