Discovery chief David Zaslav didn’t exactly have a free-spending reputation prior to his company’s merger with WarnerMedia. The search of $3 billion in post-merger cost savings (“synergies,” in the preferred corporate speak) did little to change that notion, nor did closer scrutiny of some big overall deals and an executive exodus.
The re-signing of HBO and HBO Max chief content officer Casey Bloys, however, sends a signal that Warner Bros. Discovery isn’t going to mess with what’s working.
Bloys’ new contract will keep him in charge of the HBO and HBO Max brands for five more years, lining his term up with that of Zaslav’s (the CEO extended his contract through 2027 last year, just after the merger was announced). As HBO and HBO Max continue to grow — the two combined for 76.8 million subscribers worldwide in the first quarter — locking down Bloys for the long run can assure the creative community that not too much will change at the new company’s prestige brand.
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That’s a good thing, as WBD has all but scrapped the scripted business at its cable channels TBS, TNT and TruTV; seen some 30 executives leave the company post-merger; and scuttled J.J. Abrams’ big-budget series Demimonde over budget concerns. Zaslav has also expressed frustration at the slow pace of output from some of the company’s big overall deals, including the $250 million pact with Abrams’ Bad Robot.
Bloys, however, can deal from a position of strength to protect the HBO brand against cost-cutting. HBO and HBO Max just earned an industry-leading 140 Emmy nominations, a full 90 percent of the total haul (155) for all of Warner Bros. Discovery. HBO continues to make culture-defining shows like Succession and Euphoria, and the first Game of Thrones spinoff, House of the Dragon, is due to premiere in late August. HBO Max, meanwhile, has gained enough of viewers’ attention to register in ratings company Nielsen’s monthly platform rankings, a year after it started offering a less expensive, ad-supported tier to its subscribers.
Not for nothing, Bloys’ extension coming on the heels of the company’s Emmy haul also helps change the narrative a bit from the glut of post-merger stories about budget cuts and layoffs. Positive perception can go a long way in Hollywood; the retention of Bloys at HBO and HBO Max suggests Zaslav and WBD are willing to play for both style and substance.
