Warner Bros Bosses Michael De Luca & Pamela Abdy Accept PGA Milestone: Execs Who’ll “Go To The Mat For The Story And The Artists They Believe In” Says Ron Howard

What’s David Robert Mitchell been up to lately? Well, since “Under The Silver Lake,” not much, but that’s about to change. Deadline reports that Mitchell has his next project lined up at Warner Bros., and the director is teaming up with Anne Hathaway and the Bad Robot crew for a new mystery project.

Anne Hathaway (Eileen) has signed on to star in a mysterious new film that David Robert Mitchell (It Follows, Under the Silver Lake) will direct for Warner Bros. Pictures, Bad Robot and Jackson Pictures.

Jennifer Maas TV Business Writer Warner Bros. Discovery received stock upgrades from two media analyst firms Friday for, among other things, making the decision to tie bonuses for CEO David Zaslav and his team to free cash flow performance. “We threw everything and the kitchen sink at a Downside Case scenario for WBD, and it still delevers to 3x by ’25E,” Wells Fargo analysts wrote in a research note published Friday, in which they upgraded WBD’s stock to “overweight” with a price target increase from $13 to $20 per share. “We now have conviction in FCF to limit downside, while the stock has asymmetric upside.” Meanwhile, Wolfe Research moved WBD from its “peer perform” rating to “outperform” and also upped the price target to $20. (At time of publication Friday, WBD stock was trading at $14.51 per share.)

plug on the project earlier this week due to budget issues. Scarlett Johansson, Penélope Cruz, Michael Fassbender and Owen Wilson were previously in talks for roles in the film which centered on an above-the-line filmmaking duo who reunite on set after falling in and out of love with one another.“Paris Paramount” would have been Meyers’ return to the director’s chair since helming 2015’s “The Intern,” which starred Robert DeNiro and Anne Hathaway.Talent deals with Warner Bros. Discovery would need to be reworked since the cast previously had buy-out deals because their deals were for Netflix.

Just days after parting ways with Netflix, Nancy Meyers next movie has found a new home as sources tell Deadline Warner Bros. is in early talks to acquire the project. Sources stress no deal is done and they are exploratory talks but add there is something to it and discussions have begun on various details about project. Deadline reported on Tuesday that the film was leaving Netflix after the studio pulled the plug due to budget concerns. Meyers moved quickly to take the project out to other studios and Warner Bros. is looking like the front-runner to land the film. Meyers will write and direct the project but what is unknown is if the all-star cast will still be joining. Meyers was in talks with Scarlett Johansson, Penelope Cruz, Owen Wilson and Michael Fassbender to star but given that was the plan when Meyers had a much larger budget it is unknown if those actors stay committed to the project.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent Warner Bros. Discovery and Amazon Prime Video have set the launch date and pricing for their ‘Warner Pass’ offer in France to March 16. Priced at €9.99 per month, the offer will be available exclusively on Amazon Prime Video Channels in France, and will boast all of HBO programs, along with 12 channels, including Warner TV, Eurosport, Discovery Channel, Cartoon Network and CNN, as well as their associated on-demand services. Subscribers will benefit from a 30-day free trial until April 3. “The launch of Warner Pass exclusively as a Prime Video channel in France is the next step in our journey to become the destination for customers in France to find the best in storytelling, premium entertainment and sports,” said Brigitte Ricou-Bellan, Prime Video French Country Director.

which first reported the news, “in her new role, Imperato Stabile will lead the division responsible for all aspects of the Warner Bros.

EXCLUSIVE: Film industry veteran Michele ‘Miss’ Imperato Stablile has been named President, Worldwide Physical Production, Warner Bros. Pictures. She will report directly to Warner Bros Pictures Group Co-Chair and CEOs Michael DeLuca and Pam Abdy. She’ll join the studio in the coming weeks.

Jenna Ortega may be ready to reunite with Tim Burton on his next project as sources confirm to Deadline that Ortega is in early talks to reunite with the Wednesday creator on Beetlejuice 2 at Warner Bros. Insiders add that Michael Keaton and Wyonna Ryder are expected to reprise their roles with Burton directing.

Japanese streamer U-Next has renewed its content deal with Warner Bros Discovery, under which it will continue to be the SVOD streaming home of HBO programming in Japan. 

Batman fans have clamored for a while now that Willem Dafoe would be a great fit to play The Joker in a movie at some point. And Dafoe has acknowledged that interest, like in his monologue when he hosted “Saturday Night Live” last year.

Amazon Studios head Jennifer Salke feels about Warner Bros. making competing projects based on J.R.R. Tolkien’s “The Lord of the Rings.” Salke, who has held the top content job at Amazon since 2018, walked a Monday red carpet for the premiere of Michael B. Jordan’s “Creed III” where she spoke with Variety about last week’s news that Warner Bros. had secured film rights to some of Tolkien’s books. One of Salke’s defining moves at Amazon was to secure television rights to the same literary works, which she achieved at great expense. The first season of Amazon’s “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power” premiered in 2022 with a big global marketing push and critical acclaim — as well as a reported budget north of $450 million for the first batch of episodes. Previously, Warner Bros. pushed out two massively successful film franchises with auteur Peter Jackson beginning in 2001. Those films grossed over $5 billion at the worldwide box office and brought home a best picture Oscar for one of the entries.

The Wrap.“But for all the scope and detail lovingly packed into the two trilogies, the vast, complex and dazzling universe dreamed up by J.R.R. Tolkien remains largely unexplored on film. The opportunity to invite fans deeper into the cinematic world of Middle-earth is an honor, and we are excited to partner with Middle-Earth Enterprises and Embracer on this adventure.”The cost of the deal made between Warner Bros., New Line Cinema and Embracer Group — the current rights holders to Tolkien’s novels — has yet to be released.

Matt Donnelly Senior Film Writer Warner Bros. Pictures is revamping the “Lord of the Rings” film franchise. On a Thursday earnings call, Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav announced that newly-installed studio leaders Mike De Luca and Pam Abdy have brokered a deal to make “multiple” films based on the beloved J. R. R. Tolkien series. The films will be developed through WB label New Line Cinema. The first series of films, helmed by Peter Jackson, grossed nearly $3 billion worldwide. Embracer Group AB made the deal with he studio for adaptations of “Lord of the Rings” and “The Hobbit.”

Brian Steinberg Senior TV Editor Warner Bros. Discovery continued to work on making all its various pieces, merged together last year, into a cohesive whole. The New York owner of the TNT and TBS cable networks, the HBO Max streaming service and the Warner Bros. production studio reported a net loss of $2.1 billion for its fiscal fourth quarter after the company wrote down $1.85 billion in assets and faced nearly $1.2 billion in restructuring expenses. Revenue fell 9%, excluding the results of foreign exchange, and the company saw ad sales decrease 14% as its TV networks, even as it worked to add subscribers to its HBO Max and Discovery+ streaming outlets.

increasing by $1 to $15.99 per month, a change not reflected in the just-reported quarterly results. The hike came as Warner plans to launch a combined, ad-supported offering of HBO Max and Discovery+ later this year at a lower price point.

For those headed to CinemaCon in Las Vegas this April, take notice: Variety reports that Warner Bros. will screen its upcoming DCEU blockbuster “The Flash” at the event.

EXCLUSIVE: Michael Crichton’s brilliant mix of science and narrative resulted in north of $10 billion in film and TV revenue and 250 million books sold. Now, the estate of the author who died in 2008 has made another major deal to bring his work back to new audiences.

The incoming Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD)/ BT Group UK sports streaming JV will be named TNT Sports, the U.S. media giant has revealed.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large The verdict is in: Syndicated court staples “Judge Mathis” and “The People’s Court” will both end their run at the end of this season, Variety has confirmed. “Judge Mathis” will wrap after 24 seasons, while this most recent iteration of “The People’s Court” wraps after its 26th season. Season 24 and Season 26, respectively.  Both shows come from Warner Bros. Unscripted Television in association with Telepictures Productions and are distributed by Warner Bros. Domestic Television Distribution. According to insiders, the decision was made due to the declining nature of the daytime syndication landscape. As local TV stations shrink their syndication dollars and the advertising marketplace shrinks for daytime syndication, first-run syndication has become a trickier landscape. At the same time, station groups have been expanding their local news broadcasts, also in a bid to save money.