Zaslav profile a bit of a nothing burger

It's no gourmet cheeseburger.

I only just got around to reading Michael Wolff’s New York Magazine profile of Warner Bros Discovery chief David Zaslav.

And, it’s kind-of interesting. It does paint a more well-rounded image of Zaslav than is usually seen in the media and I think he generally comes out of it looking alright. Certainly, the tone of Wolff’s piece is that he is rightfully skeptical of Zaslav as a figure that can keep WBD moving forward.

But then you read sections like this and it’s hard to work through the friction of how so many of us *feel* about where WBD is at vs where the numbers suggest things are going:

On this, the company’s position is wholly bullish: In the past six months, Zaslav says, Max has added 20 million subscribers (it’s actually 19 million) — “growing, accelerating, and profitable and will generate more profit every quarter,” Zaslav emphatically makes the point — bringing it to a worldwide 117 million yet being in only half of the markets that Netflix, with its 300 million subscribers, is in. Max is growing at a rate that, if sustained (a big if), as it reaches 100 percent penetration will overtake Netflix. And this is before a series of big new franchise investments has come online.

The recent announcement of its quarterly results showed nearly $700 million in profits from streaming and direct to consumer. The company’s estimate of $1 billion in 2025 was raised to $1.3 billion. Management has been feverishly circulating a column in Puck — often a gossipy thorn in Zaslav’s side — by William Cohan arguing the company has turned the corner by paying down debt and increasing its streaming cash flow. Cohan, echoing the WBD message, extolled the Zaslav strategy of “internationalizing” Max. And, indeed, it is a certain leap out in front of the loud chorus of the past few years that predicted nothing but a doom spiral.

When you think about Max soon launching a Harry Potter show. And if WBD gets any traction with its DC Universe reboot, that could also feed Max nicely with planned TV shows. Is there really anything stopping it from scaling to Netflix numbers at the current trajectory? I don’t think it will, but… it could…

Anyway, it’s an interesting enough article. Too much is made in the article of a Zoom call Zas is in each week with an older crowd of former media heavyweights - why not occasionally bend the ear of experienced vets? It is a changed media environment, so as long as he is also talking to a more varied range of voices, what’s the issue? It reads as mischievous colour for the sake of the story rather than adding anything of real consequence.

You can read the article in full at NY Mag, but note that there is one of those easily bypassed paywalls.

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News Desk

• Jimmy Fallon has a new unscripted show, On Brand. It’ll follow him launching a marketing agency, inspired by Fallon’s experience working with his own global partnerships in the auto, insurance, apparel, gaming and technology industries. Ugh. Read: Deadline

• The UK’s Jimmy, Jimmy Carr, will host a new show for Comedy Central UK based on the popular Reddit: Jimmy Carr’s Am I the A**hole?. Read: C21

• Return to Paradise, Australia’s spin-off series of UK weekly murder mystery Death in Paradise, has entered production for season 2.

• NBC has a show about a foreign embassy in development titled Foreign Service. One predicts it will do as well as every other effort to make TV shows about foreign embassies (they are always duds). Read: Deadline

• A cause of death has been revealed for former Buffy star Michelle Trachtenberg. She died naturally as a result of complications from diabetes mellitus. Read: Deadline

• Amanda Byrnes will charge her fan $50 a month with her new OnlyFans account. She promises that she will not be posting sleazy content, which really means she should be working pretty hard to justify that $50 price point. Read: People

• Genndy Tartakovsky (Samurai Jack) had a long-awaited animated film that seems to be a sex comedy about a dog set to be neutered. It was one of the films dumped by Warner Bros, but has been picked up by Netflix where it’ll debut on August 13 (presumably only in North America?). Read: Polygon

• Comedian Nate Bargatze will host the 2025 Emmy Awards. Media, start writing your “Who is Nate Bargatze” explainers now. Read: Variety

• The ongoing row between Sony and CBS over distribution rights for Jeopardy! and Wheel of Fortune continues with a Judge handing the rights back to CBS following an appeal. Read: Deadline

• 14 million viewers in the US watched the series finale of Yellowstone prequel 1923. Massive. And a reminder that the most buzzed about shows in the media are often not indicative of what people are actually watching. Next up will be prequel series 1944. Read: thefutoncritic

• Citadel spinoffs Citadel: Honey Bunny and Citadel: Diana have been officially canceled at Prime Video. Storylines from planned second seasons for both shows will be woven into the second season of Citadel. I don’t think it has been announced as the final season of Citadel… but… y’know… Read: THR

• Also cancelled are Peacock shows Based on a True Story and Mr. Throwback. Try to limit your gasps of shock. Read: Deadline

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Weird headline

Uh, NPR… he’s the star of the show. Who has he stolen it from?

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Trailer Park

Poker Face returns May 8 on Peacock for season 2.

Bosch spin-off Ballard debuts on Prime Video mid-year.

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That’s the newsletter for today.

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