On today’s episode of the Daily Variety podcast, Variety’s Matt Donnelly talks about the industry whirlwind surrounding Paramount, Warner Bros. Discovery, and the future of film and television. And Marc Malkin presents a red carpet rundown with Catherine Zeta-Jones for Variety.
Donnelly, Variety’s senior entertainment writer, details the industry buzz he picks up while covering the extraordinary transformation underway at the Paramount property under the new leadership of CEO David Ellison.
“For a long time, we’ve known that David has bigger ambitions and obviously has the wallet to take him there,” Donnelly said. “He introduces us to David, a millennial mogul. He’s getting a little tougher. David has been likened to a choir boy so many times in this industry over the past decade, but I think he’s a whole different breed now. He takes talent in person to fancy lunches and… , landing planes in his backyard, he’s just so aggressive that he doesn’t let his accountants and triggermen and even his creative executives do it. He’s at the front, and obviously he’s not afraid to spend big money on things he thinks will have long-term value, like the UFC.”
Donnelly says interest in Ellison’s move has captured Hollywood executives. But there is also sadness at the prospect that Warner Bros., one of Hollywood’s biggest studios for more than 100 years, is likely to be swallowed up by another company in the near future.
“I think the reality has changed a lot, especially across the content sector,” Donnelly said. He likens it to the sense of loss when 20th Century Fox was acquired by Disney in 2019. The label continues as 20th Century Studio. But this is an unmistakable sign that the playing field for Hollywood and the creative community is shrinking. “There was definitely some sadness about what would be lost in losing an autonomous studio player,” he says. “I truly believe that Warner Bros. is the envy of this city in terms of the diversity and history of its film library, and it is incredibly prolific and successful in television content production and linear business.”
