It’s official: Movie studio veteran Alan Horn helps the new Warner Bros. team. Discovery.
The newly formed company — born when Discovery bought Warners from AT&T — brought Horn on board as an advisor during the transition period. He will assist, among others, Michael De Luca and Pamela Abdy, who are sold by Warner Bros. Discovery chief David Zaslav have been tapped to run the film studio (the duo replace Toby Emmerich).
Zaslvav has been in talks with Horn for months, according to a staff note distributed by Zazlav on Thursday. The high-profile appointment is something of a reunion for Horn, who spent a long time as co-chairman of Warner Bros. worked before joining Disney. He left the Disney gig late last year.
Here’s Zaslav’s full memo to staff:
All,
I am pleased to share that Alan Horn, one of the most respected studio executives in the industry, has agreed to assist me in a consultant role during this transition period, which begins August 1.
No one knows this company better than Alan. He has had an extraordinary career spanning almost half a century. Most recently, he was chairman and later co-chairman and chief creative officer of The Walt Disney Studios, where he oversaw the production of all films and the integration of Lucasfilm and the Fox film studios, as well as expansion for nearly 10 years. into producing content for Disney’s streaming services.
For the past six months I have been lucky enough to spend time with Alan. He has been generous and immensely helpful to me, and I have learned a lot about the business from our conversations. I couldn’t be happier to continue benefiting from his mindset, expertise and stellar instincts as we transition our film business and sharpen our film strategy for the future. And I know Mike and Pam are equally excited to have Alan’s ear and benefit from his wealth of experience gained from such an illustrious track record.
In many ways this is a homecoming. Alan began his career with the legendary Norman Lear and partners Jerry Perenchio and Bud Yorkin, and later co-founded and lead Castle Rock Entertainment before serving as president and COO of Warner Bros. for 12 years. used to be. He knows the ins and outs of this studio and helped build it into the powerhouse it is today. He also has widespread talent relationships and great respect and appreciation for our unparalleled collection of IP, and will be able to bring a unique and valued perspective to the overall creative process. We are so glad he is joining us.
David