Warner Bros. Discovery CFO Gunnar Weidenfels says that the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes have saved his company $100 million. During a Q2 earnings results call today, the executive says that WBD has an estimated “low 100 million range” savings as a result of the work stoppage. Investors were always going to have questions about the efficacy of not having most of the Fall theatrical slate and possibly Spring 2024 not make their release dates. While this announcement does nothing to assuage those fears, it does give the executive something to point toward as the questions mount. Warner Bros. Discovery is also enjoying the cosmic fortune of Barbie possibly enjoying a $1 billion run at the box office.
Wiedenfels said, “While we are hoping for a fast resolution, our modeling assumes a return to work date in early September, should the strikes run through the end of the year, I would expect several $100 million upside to our free cash flow guidance and some incremental downside for adjusted EBITDA.”
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“We’re in the business of storytelling. Our goal is to tell great stories, stories with the power to entertain and, when we’re at our best, inspire with stories that come to life on screens big and small. We cannot do any of that without the entirety of the creative community, the great creative community. Without the writers, directors, editors, producers, actors, the whole below-the-line crew,” Zaslav added. “Our job is to enable and empower them to do their best work. We’re hopeful that all sides will get back to the negotiating room soon and that these strikes get resolved in a way that the writers and actors feel they are fairly compensated and their efforts and contributions are fully valued.”
David Zaslav Argues For End of Strike on Investor Call
While the WGA has been outside picketing for 3 months now, the Actors have only been alongside them for a couple of weeks. During the aforementioned earnings call, Zaslav made it clear that he wants an end to the strike. The Warner Bros. Discovery CEO has made a bunch o changes since taking over the company, and could use another massive victory like Barbie. But, you can’t do that without the people who make this art being fairly compensated.
“It’s critically important that everybody, the writers, the directors, the actors and producers… everyone needs to be fairly compensated and they need to feel valued and feel that they’re fairly compensated in order to do their best work. And we have to focus on getting that done. I’m hopeful that it’s going to happen soon,” Zaslav added. “I think all of us in this business are very keen to figure out a solution as quickly as possible. We are in some uncharted waters, in terms of the world as it is today and measuring it all. And so I think, in good faith, we all got to fight to get this resolved. And it needs to be resolved in a way that the creative community feels fairly compensated and fully valued.”
David Zaslav Talks About Increased Content Licensing
As part of WBD’s marked changes, the company has been licensing out its shows to rivals in an effort to save some money. Zaslav was asked about leasing programs to services like Netflix, Tubi, and others on Thursday.
“The content licensing we have, we have one of the one of the best TV and motion picture libraries in the world,” Zaslav said. “If you look at the overall economics, I think we’re actually below the last couple of years, in terms of what we’re selling. If the strike continues, there may be more demand. We’re always looking to maximize. We’re hoping the strike gets settled as soon as possible. It’s important. It’s important that we get going and that we get back to work doing doing what we love. And we’re hoping that both of these strikes get resolved soon. That’s our focus.”
What do you think of the numbers that Warner Bros. Discovery are waving around? Let us know down in the comments!
