David Zaslav Vows Warner Bros. Discovery ‘Will Not Overspend to Drive Subscriber Growth’

Jennifer Maas TV Business WriterBrad Wilson, HBO Max’s U.S. general manager and EVP of global data, CRM and growth, is exiting amid an ongoing shakeup at new company Warner Bros.

Jennifer Maas TV Business Writer“Somebody Feed Phil” has been renewed for Season 6 at Netflix ahead of its fifth season premiere, Variety has learned exclusively.The five-episode “Somebody Feed Phil” Season 5, which debuts May 25, was filmed back to back with Season 6, which also consists of five episodes.“We filmed 10 episodes in the sweet spot between Delta and Omicron. Remember that? So from August to January, we pretty much filmed everything,” Rosenthal told Variety.

Jennifer Maas TV Business WriterBrett Weitz is exiting as general manager of TBS, TNT and truTV, Variety has learned.Weitz, who was appointed to the role in January 2019, was among the group of WarnerMedia execs that came over under the new David Zaslav-selected regime at Warner Bros. Discovery, following the close of the WarnerMedia-Discovery merger in early April.Weitz was moved under Discovery lifestyle channels chief Kathleen Finch, who assumed a newly created role of chairman and chief content officer of U.S.

Variety, which first reported the news, part of the terms of them joining would be having access as producers to DC Entertainment with the rights to develop characters and properties, with DC a major priority for Warner Bros. Discovery under its new leadership from CEO David Zaslav. However, any new agreement with De Luca and Abdy would not be completed until they’ve officially exited Amazon.

Michael De Luca and his partner Pamela Abdy are in talks to join Warner Bros. Discovery as film executives, multiple insiders familiar with the situation told Variety.Scenarios being discussed include having De Luca and Abdy launch a movie label within the Warner Bros. Pictures group, or enlisting them to take roles within that division itself.

reorganized its marketing department once again, axing writers on its fledgling Tudum fan site five months after launch. And the fallout from the Warner Bros.

Todd Spangler NY Digital EditorAfter years of companies spending like drunken sailors on streaming video, some are now suffering hangovers.Netflix, in the first quarter of 2022, lost customers for the first time in more than a decade. It could shed 2 million more in Q2. The streaming giant is scrambling to find new sources of revenue growth, with execs hoping to monetize password-sharing freeloaders and — previously unthinkable at the Big Red N — planning to introduce advertising-supported plans.CNN+, hailed as a bridge to the news cabler’s future, is DOA: It’s getting axed 32 days after launch under new management at Warner Bros.

The new Warner Bros. Discovery leadership is starting to unify its policies across the two parts of the company. I hear that Adria Alpert Romm, chief people and culture officer, sent an email this morning to WarnerMedia employees about the implementation of a new hybrid work schedule.

Matt Donnelly Senior Film WriterThe trade organization representing American movie theater owners isn’t gloating about Netflix’s recent stock misfortunes — they’re opening their arms, they say.At CinemaCon, the annual Las Vegas convention of theatrical exhibitors, leadership from the National Association of Theatre Owners touched on Netflix’s recent subscriber losses and subsequent jaw-dropping $54 billion loss in market cap.Netflix’s sign of softening brought a screeching halt to the prevailing industry logic that going all-in on streaming investment was the way to please shareholders. While some speculated this would benefit traditional theatrical releases, Warner Bros.

TNT and TBS are moving out of the scripted game under new parent company Warner Bros. Discovery, which under CEO David Zaslav has promised $3 billion in cost savings in the post-WarnerMedia merger era, Variety has learned exclusively.The WarnerMedia-run cable channels will no longer develop new scripted content, two sources close to the matter tell Variety.

the Q1 earnings were released. “As you’ve heard me say, we are not trying to win the direct-to-consumer spending war,” the WBD chief said, instead promising that the newly combined WarnerMedia-Discovery company would “invest in scale smartly.”He already made the first difficult choice within the first week after Discovery closed its $43 billion acquisitor of the larger WarnerMedia: Zaslav, notorious in the industry for being a no-nonsense cost-cutter, decided to close down the much-hyped CNN+.

millions of paying customers may cancel in the months ahead.In the first earnings report since Discovery’s $43 billion acquisition of the iconic Warner Bros. studios, the entertainment giant reported the former Discover business reported that profit increased to $456 million, compared with $140 million, in the year-ago period , while revenue jumped 13% to nearly $3.2 billion.

In Warner Bros Discovery’s first earnings call with Wall Street analysts, CEO David Zaslav re-emphasized his plan to take a prudent approach to streaming as he guides the newly merged company.

Jennifer Maas TV Business WriterNetflix reported its first-quarter 2022 earnings Tuesday, revealing how the company did in terms of subscriber signups and financial growth in the three-month period that included the debuts of “Bridgerton” Season 2 and “The Adam Project.”The streaming service lost 200,000 subscribers in Q1 and said it expects to lose another 2 million in the current second quarter. In January, Netflix reported it had 221.84 million subscribers at the end of 2021. The new total is 221.64 million subs.Netflix previously forecast 2.5 million paid net adds in Q1 while Wall Street analysts expected Netflix to add 2.8 million new subscribers worldwide in the first quarter vs.

Jennifer Maas TV Business WriterSPOLER ALERT: Do not read if you have not watched “Ariadne,” the Season 1 finale of “Russian Doll.”It’s been more than three years since the first season of “Russian Doll” launched on Netflix, and as such, even the most die-hard fans of the Natasha Lyonne time-loop dramedy need to forgive themselves if they don’t remember exactly how the first-season ending played out. But it is important we get that straight now if you want to enjoy Season 2 right when it launches Wednesday.So here to clear up what she considers a “misnomer” about the conclusion to “Russian Doll” Season 1, which had a lot of threads to follow in its closing moments, for Variety is star and co-creator Lyonne herself.

Jennifer Maas TV Business WriterWarner Bros. Discovery and AT&T each ended the trading week with their respective shares selling at a 3% increase from where the stocks opened Monday.The newly formed Warner Bros. Discovery, born out of the $43 billion merger of Discovery, Inc.

David Zaslav expressed a lot of excitement for the future of his newly merged company on Thursday during a company town hall with Oprah Winfrey at the Warner Bros. Burbank lot, he was vague on details for some immediate issues, including where $3 billion in planned cuts will come from. When asked by Winfrey about the cuts, Zaslav said that his transition team is still in the process of sifting through assets from both sides of the new company to determine where such cuts could be made.

Warner Bros Discovery CEO David Zaslav and other top execs are meeting with employees in a town hall this morning on the Warner lot in Burbank. It’s the first large-scale staff meeting since last Friday’s close of the $43 billion merger.

Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav brought out the big guns during his address to the new company at its first global town hall for employees Thursday.The newly merged company brought out its most famous employee, Oprah Winfrey, to moderate the event and to help introduce Zaslav to Hollywood.Winfrey is a longtime supporter of the media mogul, who has championed the Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN) — a cable channel jointly jointed by Warner Bros. Discovery and Harpo Studio — alongside her since its launch in 2011.

AT&T’s stock price on Monday jumped 8%, to $19.67, as a probable result of Friday’s closure of the deal. The Warner Bros. Discovery share price dipped to $24.48 in after-hours trading, but the start and finish were close enough that the day could hardly be called a roller coaster.Monday was the first day of public trading for Warner Bros.