Tariffs will make streaming more expensive, sooner than you think

Summary

Global tariffs could lead to higher streaming costs due to international tariff retaliation.
Economic downturns may result in higher streaming prices and push towards ad-supported content.
Bong Joon Ho’s film Mickey 17 starring Robert Pattinson is heading to streaming.

The world is buzzing about President Trump’s recently proposed global tariffs, which will make the price of everything from tech to groceries more expensive for the average American consumer. However, what about something like streaming entertainment? After all, a Netflix subscription isn’t a tangible good. Certainly your entertainment budget won’t take a hit from this looming economic crisis, right?

Wrong.

Tariffs will impact your streaming in two ways. First up, many countries are drawing up plans to impose retaliatory tariffs on American services in response to the initial tariffs proposal, which would make Netflix immediately more expensive in other countries, which will likely drive down subscriptions in these countries, which means Americans would likely have to pay more so that Netflix can make up for the lost international revenue. The Hollywood Reporter has a great breakdown here about how tariffs could specifically harm Netflix if you’d like to read more.

And speaking of lost revenue, when times are tough, research shows that time and time again, entertainment is the first thing consumers cut back on. And that could spell very bad news, not only for Netflix, but for streamers across the board. We’ve known for awhile that streaming just isn’t profitable on its own, and needs ads to boost revenue. And with folks cutting back on subscriptions during what may well be an upcoming recession, expect to see higher prices overall and an even bigger push towards ad-supported content.

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Mickey 17 is on-the-nose fun featuring Robert Pattinson’s most unhinged performance ever

Streaming the movie this week

Warner Bros.

Mickey 17

Release Date: February 28, 2025
Runtime: 137 minutes
Director: Bong Joon Ho
Writers: Bong Joon Ho
Producers: Brad Pitt, Dede Gardner, Jeremy Kleiner, Marianne Jenkins, Dooho Choi, Jesse Ehrman

Robert Pattinson

Mickey Barnes
Mark Ruffalo

Kenneth Marshall

It may have only been a few weeks since it was theatrically released, but Korean filmmaker Bong Joon Ho’s most recent film, Mickey 17, is already heading to streaming in just a few days on April 8 on the usual digital platforms, including Prime Video, AppleTV and Fandango at Home. Though the film was a box office flop, I’m hopeful audiences will give this film a second shot on streaming.

Sure, its political commentary might be a little bit on the nose, but when I tell you Robert Pattinson is giving the performance of a lifetime in this movie, I am not joking. Sure, you may love him as Bruce Wayne in The Batman, and marveled at his voice work in The Boy and the Heron, but I’m telling you, watching Pattison as Mickeys 17 and 18 in this film changed me. He won’t get any awards recognition for it, but I think he should. Oh, and the little creeper guys in the movie are pretty freaking cute too.

If you’re somehow not convinced to give this film a shot when it hits digital marketplaces this week, it will also be heading to Max eventually, and if you’re a subscriber you can check it out there for free, probably in May or June.