The bombshell news that Netflix is in exclusive talks to buy Warner Bros Discovery is shaking the global film and TV industries.
Former WarnerMedia CEO Jason Kilar is one of the first studio level executives to comment publicly on the pending deal. Fair to say he isn’t a fan.
“If I was tasked with doing so, I could not think of a more effective way to reduce competition in Hollywood than selling WBD to Netflix,” Kilar posted to X as news of the deal broke late last night.
In response to an X post disagreeing with his take, Kilar added: “When I use the phrase competition in Hollywood, I am referring to having a sufficient number of vibrant and robust entities that can and will aggressively compete against each other to produce and distribute films, series, live events and more for decades to come. I am not focused on the legacy of it all.”
Roblox board member Kilar was CEO of WarnerMedia for two years between 2020-2022. The former Hulu CEO and ex-Amazon exec oversaw a media portfolio that included CNN, film studio Warner Bros. and HBO. He was in place for the launch of HBO Max and his tenure become well known for the controversial ‘Project Popcorn’ initiative, which sent WB’s 2021 film slate directly to HBO Max day-and-date. The move angered many creatives but HBO and Max ended 2021 with a combined 73M global subs.
Despite the move during his time in charge to collapse the theatrical window, Kilar still took issue with prospect of streamer Netflix acquiring WB.
Questions abound this morning about the Netflix deal for WB. Many in the business are still trying to make sense of it and there are surely legal twists and turns to come. Check back in on Deadline shortly for more reaction.