Warner Bros. Discovery is serious about getting rid of Warner Bros.’ massive debt. They are doing this by writing off more content and development than initially anticipated.
By examining a securities filing Wednesday, the Hollywood Reporter reveals that WBD said that the company has decided to increase the write-offs and impairments related to content and development costs from $2-2.5 billion from October up to $2.8-3 billion. With that massive change, WBD's restructuring and impairment charges will now be between $4.1 billion and $5.3 billion.
With a desire to reduce the company’s debt, bigger-budget films and TV shows are now on the chopping block.
'Minx'Credit: Lionsgate Television
The most recent cancellations or completely pulled content from HBO Max includes several titles, including Love Life, Minx, Westworld, and The Nevers. While some sources say Patty Jenkins’ Wonder Woman 3was given the ax as James Gunn and Peter Safran develop a decade-long slate for DC, the film was not canceled for monetary purposes.
Despite its recent lackluster season, many fans were shocked to hear that Westworld got the boot as it was preparing for its final season.
“We are incredibly proud of Westworld and the remarkable work of our cast and crew,” series creators Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy said in a statement. “We are excited to have the opportunity to welcome a whole new audience to our show.”
The company said that a number of HBO and HBO Max programs will be sold to third-party ad-supported streaming services. These shows will include Westworld, The Nevers, FBoy Island, Legendary, The Time Traveler’s Wife, and Raised by Wolves.
As for the shows that get booted off HBO Max and float through a limbo space similar to the Phantom Zone, the company “is speaking with the studio partners about opportunities to further expand the reach of the shows, including but not limited to licensing the series to third party FAST platforms.”
'Raised by Wolves'Credit: Warner Bros. Discovery Global Streaming & Interactive Entertainment
The restructuring cost estimates are not changing at this time, but things can and will more than likely change with CEO David Zaslav more than willing to cancel any projects that don’t appeal to middle America.
WBD has been aggressively looking to cut costs, sending a chill down the entire industry’s spine. No one at WBD, HBO, or the HBO Max studio is safe as restructuring, content write-offs, and condensing are the main focus of the newly merged company.
All we can do is cherish the shows that we love on HBO Max or purchase physical copies of the films and series that we enjoy. Soon, HBO Max will no longer exist as a streaming service in the next year, being replaced with a new streaming service that combines HBO and Discovery for a perfectly strange breeding ground for new films and shows… if anyone is brave enough to try and develop anything with the company.
Has your favorite movie or show been removed from HBO Max? Let us know your thoughts on the issue in the comments!
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
