Warner Bros. Discovery said it’s targeting 12-14 theatrical releases annually across its four key labels – Warner Bros. Pictures, DC Studios, New Line Cinema and Warner Bros. Animation — going forward as the company takes a victory lap following a super second quarter at the box office.
In a letter to shareholders accompanying its latest financial results, the company led by CEO David Zaslav said the releases will include 1-2 Warner Bros. Pictures tentpoles based on well-known Warner Bros. IP; 1-2 DC Studios films; 3-4 New Line Cinema releases (including horror and comedy); 1-2 WB Animation titles; and a select number of moderately budgeted original films.
Films released by WBD’s Motion Picture Group led by Pam Abdy and Michael DeLuca have generated over $3 billion in global box office year-to-date including over $2 billion from four films out in the second quarter, A Minecraft Movie, Sinners, Final Destination: Bloodlines, and F1 for Apple, which have together generated over $2 billion in global box office to date.
Warner Bros. Studios has distributed five films in a row that opened to over $45 million domestically, underpinning “our increased bullishness regarding its future creative and financial prospects,” the letter noted.
“We were in last place,” said CEO David Zaslav on a call with analysts after the numbers, almost marveling himself at a shift to almost first (after Disney).
The company expects $2.4 billion in total Studios profit for 2025 on the way to a $3 billion goal.
The company spent a lot of the letter on the recent momentum, saying it stems from “a deliberate rebuilding and transformation strategy executed over the last three years” since Discovery acquired Warner Media. That includes a more bottoms-up, analytically rigorous green lighting process with more granular input from distribution and global marketing teams; more systematic marketing and distribution checkpoints ahead of releases with an emphasis on the final eight weeks prior to release; and using real-time data to make better windowing decisions.
The film studio reorganized its marketing and distribution teams into a globally integrated model that has enabled us to seamlessly coordinate film releases across territories. That resulted in some recent layoffs.
“With each of these measures, our goal has been to better position Warner Bros. Motion Picture Group to maximize the potential upside for creatively successful films, while reducing the inherent downside risk,” the letter said.
Superman from DC Studios opened to $220 million globally, the strongest DC Studios global opening since 2022. Jame Gunn is prepping the next one.
“In its long history, the DC universe has never been managed in a more cohesive, collaborative, and strategic way. James Gunn and Peter Safran bring a unified creative vision to this beloved collection of storylines, and initial progress has heightened our long-term optimism.”
Gunn is busy on the next installments of the DC family, including The Batman II (2027) preparing to begin shooting next spring and the next Superman, as well as Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow (2026), Clayface (2026), and the next Wonder Woman.
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