Warner Bros. Discovery’s Noisy Week, From TCM And ‘The Flash’ To Netflix Talks And CNN Chatter, Highlights Media Giant’s Many Challenges

GQ magazine has removed a profile of Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav from its website after the company objected to the article.

J. Kim Murphy Indiana Jones has begun his last box office crusade, with the fifth franchise entry earning $24 million on its opening day from 4,600 theaters. It’s a figure that includes $7.2 million in previews in Thursday previews. The action-adventure film from Disney and Lucasfilm is expected to debut near the bottom of projections, projecting a three-day opening of $60 million or so. It’ll be more than enough for the Harrison Ford finale to land in the top spot on domestic charts, setting itself up to draw crowds through the Fourth of July holiday — but it’s not exactly the victorious tone-setter for one of the 20 or so most expensive blockbusters ever made. With a whopping $295 million production budget, “Indiana Jones 5” faces quite the trek to theatrical profitability.

Adam B. Vary Senior Entertainment Writer SPOILER ALERT: This story discusses major plot developments, including the ending, of “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny,” currently playing in theaters. When director James Mangold started writing “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny” with screenwriters Jez and John-Henry Butterworth, he didn’t know how the movie was going to end. Mangold inherited the film from director Steven Spielberg, who had been developing the project for three years with screenwriter David Koepp. When Mangold took over, he and the Butterworth started effectively from scratch, crafting a story in which Harrison Ford’s titular archeologist and Nazi puncher contends with his own age and irrelevance while chasing after the Antikythera, a mysterious device with the power to find fissures in time, created by the ancient Greek mathematician and inventor Archimedes.

Goodbyes don’t tend to mean much in the Hollywood franchise system. Death isn’t a reliable end for characters or, lately, even actors. Technology, nostalgia and the often-inflated value of brands and IP have created a nightmarish cycle of resurrection and regurgitation, curdling what we love most.

Clayton Davis Senior Awards Editor The casual Oscar observer might wonder how some of the 398 new members invited to join the Academy’s ranks qualify for the honor that includes Oscar voting rights. From Taylor Swift to Warner Bros-Discovery CEO David Zaslav, it’s not always obvious how the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences decides who to invite as next year’s class of new members. Oscar winners are automatically invited to join the ranks after their big moment, so Billie Eilish was therefore eligable after she won the Oscar for the James Bond song “No Time to Die” (2021) with her brother Finneas.

Jesse Armstrong and Danny McBride will have some individual independence to celebrate this holiday weekend.

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor Warner Bros. Discovery raised the hackles of some in the film community with last month’s launch of Max — the reskinned and renamed version of HBO Max — because the new service’s content details pages consolidated writers, directors, producers and others under a single “creators” heading. Five weeks after issuing a mea culpa and promising to fix the situation, WBD has now updated the listings in Max. The updates appear to be live on platforms including the max.com website and iOS and will be rolling out across all device platforms this week. For example, on Max, Oscar-winning film “Raging Bull,” starring Robert De Niro, now includes the following listings: Directors: Martin Scorsese; Writers: Paul Schrader, Mardik Martin; Producers: Irwin Winkler, Robert Chartoff; Based on Source Material by: Jake La Motta, Joseph Carter, Peter Savage. When Max launched on May 23, the service grouped all of those individuals under a single “creators” heading.

After two full weekends of a decidedly underwhelming release, it’s not hyperbole to say “The Flash” is an unmitigated box office disaster for Warner Bros. Discovery.

CNN is exploring ways to put more of its news offerings on Warner Bros. Discovery’s Max, with a report that plans are in the works to offer live programming on the platform outside the U.S.

Facing the worst reviews ever for an Indiana Jones movie, the Lucasfilm franchise finale, Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, is hoping to gain traction with audiences and best its $60M-$65M domestic start, $140M global opening.

Variety, in wake of the exit of network head Pola Changnon this week. Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav had been considering bringing in De Luca and Abdy for some time, insiders said, to rely on their cinephile instincts and shape the best possible programming slate for the channel — one beloved by Hollywood titans and film fans for its showcase of film history. TCM will still exist with the US Networks Group run by Kathleen Finch. While De Luca and Abdy will advise, a senior executive in charge of operations is expected to be named in the future. Warner Bros. Discovery had no comment on the matter.

layoffs of several other members of the network’s top brass amid cuts of 100 staffers across Warner Bros. Discovery’s U.S.

Amidst mounting concern for the future of Turner Classic Movies following the latest in restructuring at Warner Bros Discovery, CEO David Zaslav has looked to assuage fears by placing the channel under the control of Michael De Luca and Pamela Abdy, the Co-Chairpersons and CEOs of Warner Bros Film Group, Deadline can confirm.

Jem Aswad Executive Editor, Music Warner Bros. Discovery is negotiating to sell around half of the storied Warner studio’s film and TV music-publishing assets for approximately $500 million, three sources confirm to Variety. The news was first reported by Hits. While it is unclear exactly which assets are on the table, one source says that the rights to “slightly less than half” of the catalog, with a price of around $500 million, are likely to go to a major label, with Sony said to be in the lead. The catalog is believed to include music from such films as “Purple Rain,” “Evita,” “Sweeney Todd,” “Rent” several “Batman” films and many more titles, as well as songs included in iconic films such as “As Time Goes By” from “Casablanca” — iconic titles to be sure, but again, it is unclear exactly which rights are in play. Top attorney Allen Grubman is said to be overseeing the deal for Warner Discovery CEO David Zaslav.

You’d be hard-pressed to find a CEO in the film and TV industry to have such an immediate impact as David Zaslav over at Warner Bros. Discovery.

Jordan Moreau In a turnaround for the streaming wars, Warner Bros. Discovery is in negotiations to license a package of library HBO titles to Netflix. If a deal were to go through, it would cement the sea-change in content distribution strategy afoot at Warner Bros. Discovery under the David Zaslav regime. HBO has licensed library content in the past — a deal with Netflix would not be groundbreaking per se, but it is notable in the era of pitched competition among the largest media companies to build direct-to-consumer streaming platforms. Netflix, the upstart outsider from Los Gatos, has been the pace car for television’s transition over the past decade.

EXCLUSIVE: HBO’s streaming walled garden is coming down, it seems.

Indiana Jones And The Dial Of Destiny director James Mangold has explained why Shia LaBeouf will not be returning to the franchise.LaBeouf played the titular archaeologist and adventurer’s son, Mutt Williams, in 2008’s Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, directed by Steven Spielberg.Explaining LaBeuof’s absence at the Dial of Destiny Los Angeles premiere on Wednesday (June 14), Mangold told Variety: “I think the point I had was that when I came on, I wanted to capture that wonderful energy between Indy and an intrepid female character.”“So that was my first goal, and there’s only so many people you can edge into a picture,” he added.The fifth instalment in the Indiana Jones franchise stars Phoebe Waller-Bridge as Indy’s goddaughter, Helena.Back in 2017, screenwriter David Koepp revealed that LaBeouf would not be returning. “Harrison plays Indiana Jones, that I can certainly say,” he told Entertainment Weekly, “And the Shia LaBeouf character is not in the film.”The latest offering marks the final instalment of the Indiana Jones franchise, and sees Harrison Ford reprise his iconic role at the age of 80.So far, Indiana Jones And The Dial Of Destiny has received mixed reviews from critics, with some hailing it as delivering a “sweet blast of pure nostalgia”, while others have declared it to be a “complete waste of time”.It’s also predicted to earn a disappointing $60million at the US box office in its opening weekend.In a four-star review of The Dial Of Destiny, NME wrote: “The biggest question – could another director succeed Steven Spielberg after four Indy films in a row – is well-answered.

#IndianaJones and the Dial of Destiny. pic.twitter.com/fNjcejQSMlWilliams was introduced by Steven Spielberg, who while introducing the James Mangold-directed film coyly paid tribute to George Lucas and Harrison Ford who were onstage with him, as the co-creators of Indiana Jones.

Indiana Jones may have had his Cannes world premiere, but Disney saved something special for the Hollywood splash of the alleged final chapter in the franchise, Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny.