Yesterday we learned that some of the leadership behind Turner Classic Movies (TCM) had been let go. Now Steven Spielberg, Martin Scorsese, and Paul Anderson have scheduled an emergency call to Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav as they try to save the network.
Yesterday Warner Bros. Discovery laid off TCM’s VP and general manager Pola Changnon; senior VP of programming and content strategy, Charles Tabesh; VP of brand creative and marketing Dexter Fedor; VP of enterprises and strategic partnerships Genevieve McGillicuddy. This raised red flags for many that TCM may soon be shutdown, and stars are rushing to try and save the network, according to a report from Indiwire.
Now it is being reported that Steven Spielberg, Martin Scorsese, and Paul Anderson will talk with David Zaslav. The group hopes to talk David Zaslav away from any possible move to end the network as it moves content over to Max.
This comes as Warner Bros. Discovery’s CEO David Zaslav said during the company’s 1st quarter 2023 earnings call that he wants to stop the bleeding in areas that are losing money.
“The key here is our streaming business is no longer a bleeder,” Zaslav said during the earnings call. “It’s hard to run a business when you have a big bleeder. And so getting this business under control, focusing on what people love to watch, how do we create content that people love? And now as we launch Max, we’ll be able to nourish and delight subscribers with the greatness of HBO, which on Sunday nights is really a cultural moment, whether it’s ‘White Lotus,’ ‘House of the Dragon,’ ‘The Last of Us,’ ‘Succession,’ and then put it together with Discovery content which has been really strong for us.”
It seems that Warner Bros. Discovery is joining a growing number of companies cutting back on cable TV staff as it focuses more on streaming. This news comes as Warner Bros. Discovery recently launched Max and has been focusing its efforts on the new streaming service. The question now is will TCM be on the cutting block as efforts move over to Max.