WarnerMedia Employees Asked To Return To Office On Short Notice By Warner Bros. Discovery

Nick Vivarelli International CorrespondentJohannes Larcher and Luis Duran, respectively HBO Max’s general managers of international and Latin America, are set to exit the streamer as part of the ongoing shakeup at Warner Bros. Discovery, Variety has confirmed.The two top HBO Max execs are the latest layoffs to surface as a new leadership team is being put in place at the merged behemoth by JB Perrette previously Discovery’s president and CEO of streaming and international and now appointed CEO and president of Warner Bros.

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 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.

As Deadline first told you, Warner Bros. was always in the cards as a landing spot for former MGM Chairman Michael De Luca and President Pam Abdy in either an executive or producer capacity. Their move to the new Warner Discovery isn’t happening immediately as the two have kept their word to Mike Hopkins, SVP Prime Video & Amazon Studios, that they’ll stay through the summer at MGM.

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.

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+.

Jennifer Maas TV Business WriterIn the wake of big spender Netflix’s Q1 shocking subscriber loss news, David Zaslav made a point to say Warner Bros. Discovery “will not overspend to drive subscriber growth” during Discovery’s first-quarter earnings call Tuesday.“As you’ve heard me say, we are not trying to win the direct-to-consumer spending war,” the WBD CEO said, instead promising that the newly combined WarnerMedia-Discovery company would “invest in scale smartly.”Warner Bros.

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.

Brian Steinberg Senior TV EditorWarner Bros. Discovery said profit rose in the first quarter despite declines in traditional TV audiences, as revenue from advertising and distribution rose thanks in part to the company’s streaming inititiatives.Warner Bros.

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.

DC Entertainment, multiple sources close to the situation told Variety.It’s been less than a week since Discovery closed its $43 billion deal for WarnerMedia, joining one of the largest producers of reality programming with one of the most venerable entertainment brands under the new moniker of Warner Bros. Discovery.

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.

Brent Lang Executive Editor of Film and MediaWall Street appears to like what Warner Bros. Discovery is selling.The combined media company started off its first full day of trading Monday in the green. Shares of Warner Bros.

David Zaslav will be pounding the Diet Cokes, his soft drink of choice, this week as he sprints across the country to Warner Bros. Discovery’s various outposts.Monday, the first day the new company begins trading on the Nasdaq under the “WBD” ticker, will kick off with a visit to Hudson Yards for a series of informal meet and greets with WarnerMedia employees before he heads to Washington, D.C. for a meeting with senior executives and CNN anchors at roughly 6 p.m.

Brian Steinberg Senior TV EditorThere’s a new contender in the arena.As Discovery begins its new era of operating Warner Bros., HBO and Turner, all eyes are on how the new company will navigate the media sector’s streaming wars with thousands of hours of content from popular TV brands like TLC, TBS, TNT, CNN and HBO. Behind that effort, however, could look a new sports giant that is poised to add another deep-pocketed player vying for major league negotiations that it previously ignored.Warner Bros.

closed on Friday.Zaslav’s travel agenda will take him to WarnerMedia’s global headquarters in New York on Monday, Warner Bros. offices in Atlanta on Tuesday, WarnerMedia/HBO offices in Culver City on Wednesday, and concluding with a town hall at WarnerMedia offices on the iconic Warner Bros. Studios lot in Burbank, according to the individual.