You have to understand that many of these filmmakers specifically elected to work with Warner Bros, denying splashy deals from Netflix and Amazon, because they wanted the theatrical experience. You can say theatrical is dead and that these filmmakers aren't getting with the times, but those were the deals that were forged.
A once-in-a-lifetime pandemic is absolutely a valid reason to reevaluate your release strategy. It might even constitute force majeure depending on the wording of the contract. But you absolutely need to speak to and negotiate with filmmakers, talent, and their representatives when making decisions like this. It isn't just because it's good business sense - I can't emphasize to you how much ire there is around town right now directed at WB - it also represents a substantial liability. Many of these deals are structured in ways where talent compensation is tied to box office milestones and residuals. By moving everything to streaming without renegotiating or buying out these deals, you are potentially monetarily screwing the A-level talent that these projects are built around. In the past, pivots to streaming have required buying out residuals and milestones of that level of talent. As has already been reported, completely failing to even consider it will lead to messy but justified legal action.
And by the way, I'm not even talking about Nolan, who absolutely overplayed his hand with Tenet. I'm talking about the five dozen other filmmakers and A-list performers, plus their agencies, who are now foaming at the mouth.
This is absolutely the work of AT&T looking to transform a legacy studio into a content loss leader. It may be a short-term win for the consumer (and believe me, I'm excited to theoretically see these films next year regardless of what happens with the pandemic), but I would not be viewing Warner Media as some strategic visionary here. This reads as a desperation Hail Mary pass.