Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav was trashed this week after it was revealed that he acquired an almost $50 million payday final yr.
Apr. 19 2024, Printed 5:30 p.m. ET
Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav was trashed this week after it was revealed that he acquired an almost $50 million payday final yr, RadarOnline.com has realized.
In a regarding improvement to come back only a few months after the Writers Guild of America and SAG-AFTRA ended their fights for higher contracts, it was revealed that Zaslav was awarded a $49.7 million wage in 2023.
Article continues beneath commercial
Zaslav was awarded a $49.7 million wage in 2023.
Based on the Wall Road Journal, Zaslav’s almost $50 million wage final yr marked a 27% improve from his wage only one yr earlier.
Zaslav’s new whopping $49.7 million wage additionally got here as his firm, Warner Bros. Discovery, continued to battle and lose cash beneath his management.
Warner Bros. Discovery shares plummeted by a devastating 10% on Friday following a worse-than-expected quarterly earnings report.
Whereas the corporate – which owns Warner Bros. studios, CNN, HBO, and HBO’s streaming service, Max – garnered a fourth quarter income of $10.28 billion in 2023, it fell in need of the $10.35 billion the corporate anticipated to herald.
Article continues beneath commercial
Zaslav earned $50 million final yr whereas most writers and actors have been picketing on the frontlines of the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes.
Zaslav blamed the poor earnings report on “underperformance.” Different trade insiders cited final yr’s WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes.
“Backside line, the studio has actually been underperforming, together with the tip of the yr the place we had some actual battle,” Zaslav reportedly mentioned throughout a Warner Bros. Discovery convention name after the earnings report was launched this week.
Article continues beneath commercial
“However we’re very optimistic about this yr and it has given us an opportunity to have loads of upside within the subsequent two years,” he added. “I imply, it was actually a battle.”
Though the Zaslav-run firm introduced in a shocking $1.45 billion with their hit film Barbie in 2023, the corporate additionally misplaced thousands and thousands of {dollars} after different movies like The Colour Purple and Aquaman: The Misplaced Kingdom primarily flopped.
Article continues beneath commercial
“I’m so delighted to listen to that whereas many people have been combating for our futures, David Zaslav noticed his compensation bundle soar by greater than $10 million.”
MORE ON:
CNN
“On the movie aspect, clearly that is going to proceed to be a hit-driven enterprise,” Warner Bros. Discovery’s chief monetary officer, Gunnar Wiedenfels, defined this week.
By no means miss a narrative — join the RadarOnline.com publication to get your every day dose of dope. Day by day. Breaking. Celeb information. All free.
Article continues beneath commercial
“And, ,” he continued, “simply final yr was an amazing instance with the best success within the movie studios historical past and a few actual challenges throughout the trade on the on the superhero aspect.”
In the meantime, a number of writers and actors took up arms on social media after it was revealed that Zaslav earned almost $50 million in 2023 whereas they have been picketing on the frontlines of the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes.
Article continues beneath commercial
“I’m so delighted to listen to that whereas many people have been combating for our futures (and barely scrapping by, even presently) David Zaslav noticed his compensation bundle soar by greater than $10 million to $49.7 million in 2023,” SAG-AFTRA’s Chelsea Schwartz tweeted. “The greed by no means ends.”
“There are folks with excessive ranges of disconnection from actuality, and there may be [David Zaslav],” tweeted one other X consumer.
Article continues beneath commercial
“Or Zaz doesn’t learn the room in any respect or he actually doesn’t care,” that consumer continued, “however he rises his personal wage, up virtually +27% about to hit the 50M mark, in the identical charges the [Warner Bros. Discovery] free-falls on the Inventory Market beneath his watch since he took over…”
“F— DAVID ZASLAV,” tweeted one more offended author. “F— CEOS. F— CAPITALISM.”