So I wrote a piece a while back on Batgirl. In it, I mentioned my concerns and overall disdain for WB Discovery’s new CEO. Initially, a part of me wondered if I was being unfairly harsh. In hindsight, I might not have been critical enough. Because the situation’s gotten worse since then.
Warner Bros. was sold by AT&T with debt in the 10s of billions. David Zaslav, the CEO of the merged company, made it his mission to reverse that by eliminating any excessive financial expenses. That’s not a bad decision on paper, but it’s the execution that matters. And so far, that’s been less-than-pleasant.
We already know about Batgirl being written off before its release, but that’s not all. Zaslav’s also written off other projects, cancelled more and left several to shop around for other services for release. He’s also removed high-profile shows from HBO Max without warning, and even decided to not renew others. In mere weeks, HBO Max’s archives have begun looking increasingly barren, angering almost everyone. And to top it off, this decision has caused WB’s stock value to drop by almost $6 billion.
I understand the need to pinch pennies when finances are tight. I do it constantly, after all! But I’m not in charge of a corporate giant with a backlog that spans over a century. I’m also not being paid exorbitantly despite cutting down on spending. Zaslav isn’t some grunt making minimum wage on a daily basis, constantly making tough decisions so he can afford groceries, but an ultra-wealthy man swinging the axe at film history. His actions are negligent.
I wish I were joking. Zaslav’s seen pushback from his own employees, with different branches of WB Discovery openly, and sometimes bluntly, criticizing him. Many long-time creators are expressing frustration over not getting advanced notice. Going back to Batgirl for a second, one of the directors expressed frustration over not being able to access footage he’d worked on because it was deleted. Or was he blocked from access? It’s unclear.
There’ve been several responses from the fan community. Perhaps the most-frequent is resorting to piracy to preserve lost content. I can’t say I’m on-board, I’ve had issues with piracy in the past, but it’s a sympathetic concern. Because one of the issues I mentioned in an older piece on digital media is the lack of permanent ownership, and how you’re always subject to the will of the streamer. The situation with WB Discovery is evidence of that.
I wish I were joking. Zaslav’s seen pushback from his own employees, with different branches of WB Discovery openly, and sometimes bluntly, criticizing him. Many long-time creators are expressing frustration over not getting advanced notice. Going back to Batgirl for a second, one of the directors expressed frustration over not being able to access footage he’d worked on because it was deleted. Or was he blocked from access? It’s unclear.
There’ve been several responses from the fan community. Perhaps the most-frequent is resorting to piracy to preserve lost content. I can’t say I’m on-board, I’ve had issues with piracy in the past, but it’s a sympathetic concern. Because one of the issues I mentioned in an older piece on digital media is the lack of permanent ownership, and how you’re always subject to the will of the streamer. The situation with WB Discovery is evidence of that.
It's especially worrying because this erases film history. Warner Bros. has, like I said, decades content. Much of this content’s also critically-acclaimed and award-winning, and some is in The AFI. If Zaslav’s current trajectory’s indication, how much of that will disappear forever? And how much of the digital content won’t be accessible for future generations? It’s concerning as a film fan, and it should be equally so to everyone who enjoys entertainment in some form.
This is another instance of overreach of corporate power. Say what you will about Disney and their acquisition of 20th Century Fox, at least they’re somewhat utilizing the purchase. Conversely, say what you will about Netflix-I can go on forever-but they’re not erasing content in large numbers as a response to their recent loss in subscribers. Zaslav’s doing no one favours by axing shows and movies left-right-and-centre, though. And given that it’s not even resolving the studio’s debts, I’m unsure what his endgame is.
Which leads me to those DC fans who are defending these cuts because of Zack Snyder. Firstly, Zaslav doesn’t care about Snyder. And secondly, what makes you think he won’t come after The Snyderverse? Yes, The Flash is still getting a movie, despite the debacle involving Ezra Miller, but so what? You don’t think that if Zaslav cared about The Snyderverse he’d be announcing far more projects for it?
This is another instance of overreach of corporate power. Say what you will about Disney and their acquisition of 20th Century Fox, at least they’re somewhat utilizing the purchase. Conversely, say what you will about Netflix-I can go on forever-but they’re not erasing content in large numbers as a response to their recent loss in subscribers. Zaslav’s doing no one favours by axing shows and movies left-right-and-centre, though. And given that it’s not even resolving the studio’s debts, I’m unsure what his endgame is.
Which leads me to those DC fans who are defending these cuts because of Zack Snyder. Firstly, Zaslav doesn’t care about Snyder. And secondly, what makes you think he won’t come after The Snyderverse? Yes, The Flash is still getting a movie, despite the debacle involving Ezra Miller, but so what? You don’t think that if Zaslav cared about The Snyderverse he’d be announcing far more projects for it?
No one likes listening to upsetting truths about the film industry. Lord knows how depressing it is to write about, and I do that regularly! But it’s unavoidable when it comes to my passion for film, as not everything’s Sunshine and lollipops. I’d love for everything to be Sunshine and lollipops, it’d be a lot tastier, but business and money are often messy and irritating. This is yet another example.
So when people in the industry are openly voicing concerns about Zaslav, expressing fears that they could be next, it’s worth listening to them. That’s far more important than if your favourite movie’s going to make a comeback. We can’t all be that fortunate, remember? Besides, Zaslav’s model is akin to reality TV. He gave us shows like Honey Boo-Boo and 19 Kids and Counting while at TLC. This isn’t to disparage fans of either show, of which I know a few, but it’s worth pointing out.
Ultimately, this is an example of how bad management can make a bad situation worse. Yes, the Warner Bros. + Discovery merger had lots of debt saddled with it. And yes, it was inevitable that changes would need to be made, and not all of them popular. But cutting content left-right-and-centre isn’t the answer. Nor is not letting your employees know in advance so they have time to prepare. It’s a tragic situation that’s only going to get worse, which saddens me.
So when people in the industry are openly voicing concerns about Zaslav, expressing fears that they could be next, it’s worth listening to them. That’s far more important than if your favourite movie’s going to make a comeback. We can’t all be that fortunate, remember? Besides, Zaslav’s model is akin to reality TV. He gave us shows like Honey Boo-Boo and 19 Kids and Counting while at TLC. This isn’t to disparage fans of either show, of which I know a few, but it’s worth pointing out.
Ultimately, this is an example of how bad management can make a bad situation worse. Yes, the Warner Bros. + Discovery merger had lots of debt saddled with it. And yes, it was inevitable that changes would need to be made, and not all of them popular. But cutting content left-right-and-centre isn’t the answer. Nor is not letting your employees know in advance so they have time to prepare. It’s a tragic situation that’s only going to get worse, which saddens me.
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