Discovery Sets Date for Shareholder Vote on WarnerMedia Deal

Sony’s Tom Holland/Mark Wahlberg-starrer Uncharted has been dated for a March 14 release in China. The studio’s Weibo account shared the news today with a video message from Holland and Wahlberg and a subtitled trailer, as well as a new poster (see it in full below). This comes at the same time as China has also set a date for Warner Bros/DC’s The Batman, which will go out on March 18.

The Flight Attendant creator Steve Yockey is expanding his relationship with Warner Bros., signing an exclusive, multi-year overall deal with WB Television Group. Under the pact, his first with the studio, Yockey will develop, create, and produce original programming to be produced by Warner Bros. Television for all platforms, including HBO Max, external streaming services, cable, and the five broadcast networks.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterSteve Yockey has signed a multi-year overall deal with Warner Bros. Television, Variety has learned.Yockey is best known for creating the critically-acclaimed HBO Max series “The Flight Attendant” starring Kaley Cuoco, which is produced by WBTV.

K.J. Yossman RTL Deutschland has inked an exclusive multi-year content deal with Warner Bros.

UPDATED, with Allison Gollust comment: Less than two weeks after Jeff Zucker resigned from CNN, the cable newser’s chief marketing exec Allison Gollust is out too.

CNN's chief marketing officer, has resigned from the network following a WarnerMedia investigation into «issues associated with Chris Cuomo and former Governor Andrew Cuomo.»WarnerMedia CEO Jason Kilar announced Gollust's resignation in a memo to CNN staffers Tuesday, following the completion of the company's «comprehensive and definitive» investigation, which WarnerMedia says was performed by «a third-party law firm and led by a former federal judge.»«Based on interviews of more than 40 individuals and a review of over 100,000 texts and emails, the investigation found violations of Company policies, including CNN's News Standards and Practices, by Jeff Zucker, Allison Gollust, and Chris Cuomo,» Kilar said in the memo.«We have the highest standards of journalistic integrity at CNN, and those rules must apply to everyone equally,» he continued.Gollust responded to the statement with one of her own, calling WarnerMedia's statement an attempt to retaliate against her following CNN president, Jeff Zucker's resignation just weeks prior.«WarnerMedia's statement tonight is an attempt to retaliate against me and change the media narrative in the wake of their disastrous handling of the last two weeks,» Gollust said.«It is deeply disappointing that after spending the past nine years defending and upholding CNN's highest standards of journalistic integrity, I would be treated this way as I leave,» Gollust added.

Just under two weeks after Jeff Zucker resigned from CNN, the cable newser’s chief marketing exec Allison Gollust is out too.

Brian Steinberg Senior TV EditorAllison Gollust, the chief marketing officer at CNN, has resigned from the network following a WarnerMedia investigation into “issues associated with Chris Cuomo and former Governor Andrew Cuomo,” according to a memo from Jason Kilar, the company’s CEO.“Performed by a third-party law firm and led by a former federal judge, the investigation was comprehensive and definitive.  It was commissioned in September and concluded this weekend, which now allows me to share additional information with you,” Kilar said.

Todd Spangler NY Digital EditorSnap hired ad-industry veteran Resh Sidhu to lead Arcadia, the Snapchat parent’s global creative studio for branded augmented reality.Sidhu joins Arcadia as global director, based in New York, heading up the AR business and managing the team globally. Most recently, she served as chief creative officer for Barbarian, working with clients including American Express, Samsung, Fenty and Joe Biden’s presidential campaign.Previously, Sidhu served as group creative director for digital agency AKQA, where she executed AR experiences for Volvo and Coca-Cola.

Warner Bros/DC’s highly-anticipated The Batman has been cleared for a release in China. A date has yet to be confirmed, but the approval is significant given the market has been light on studio titles across the past year.

The Lord of the Rings franchise is branching out even further with the announcement of New Line’s upcoming The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim anime movie.

For those who can’t have their fill of the Lord of the Rings in the upcoming Amazon series, there’s The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim anime movie from New Line Cinema and Warner Bros. Animation which the studio has set for release on April 12, 2024 (not April 21 as reported by others; that’s a Sunday). Warners already had the release date RSVPed for a New Line movie on the calendar.

Teen Titans Go! will be back for more action as Cartoon Network renews the animated series for Season 8.

Ed Meza @edmezavarWarnerMedia and RTL Deutschland are partnering for the first time on the six-part co-production “Two Sides of the Abyss.”RTL Deutschland has secured first-run rights to the Warner TV original for Germany, where it will initially stream on its newly renamed RTL Plus platform, as well as free-TV rights thereafter.Warner TV Serie (formerly TNT Serie) will offer the series on pay TV in Germany, Austria and Switzerland, while WarnerMedia streaming platform HBO Max will launch the series as a Max Original in 61 territories across the U.S., Latin America and Europe. WarnerMedia International Television Distribution will handle international distribution outside of these territories.Created and written by Kristin Derfler,  “Two Sides of the Abyss” follows Wuppertal police officer Luise Berg (Anne Ratte-Polle) as she heads for an inevitable catastrophe after her daughter’s murderer is released early from prison.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterBill Lawrence is staying put at Warner Bros. Television, with the TV writer and producer inking a massive five-year deal sources value at nine figures, Variety has confirmed.WBTV would not comment on the financial terms of the deal.

Bill Lawrence, the top comedy showrunner at the moment amid the enormous critical and commercial success of Ted Lasso, is staying put at Warner Bros. TV Group through 2028. After lengthy negotiations, Emmy winner Lawrence, who had a little time left on his current overall pact at the studio, has closed a blockbuster new five-year deal for his Doozer production company, I have learned. Noone is commenting but sources value the pact at more than $100 million, catapulting Lawrence in the very top tear of TV showrunners.

Lebanon and Kuwait won’t be playing "Death on the Nile," Deadline has confirmed, and that’s unfortunately due to both countries’ protest of Israeli native star Gal Gadot. Gadot served in the Israeli military for two years prior to becoming a model and actress, as her native country mandates it. Given her connection to the IDF, Lebanon previously blocked the actress’ movie "Wonder Woman" from release in May 2017.

Discovery has set March 11 as the date of a special shareholder meeting to hold a vote on the company’s proposed merger with AT&T’s WarnerMedia.

EXCLUSIVE: George Clooney’s long-awaited adaptation of The Boys in the Boat looks to be gearing up production as sources tell Deadline, Clooney has rounded out his cast with Joel Edgerton, Jack Mulhern, Sam Strike, Luke Slattery, Thomas Elms, Tom Varey, Bruce Herbelin-Earle, Wil Coban and Hadley Robinson joining Callum Turner, who was previously announced. MGM, Spyglass and Smokehouse are partnering on the production with Clooney directing and Mark L. Smith writing the script.

Rebecca Rubin Film and Media Reporter“Vengeance,” a darkly comedic thriller starring Issa Rae and Ashton Kutcher, is coming to theaters this summer.Focus Features has scheduled the film to open on July 29. It will hit the big screen on the same day as Dwayne Johnson’s superhero adventure “Black Adam” from Warner Bros.“The Office” alum B.J. Novak wrote and directed “Vengeance” in his feature debut.

Brian Steinberg Senior TV EditorAT&T and Discovery have gained clearance for their much-anticipated deal to spin off WarnerMedia so it can merge with Discovery, a deal that has already been approved in Europe. The approval of Discovery shareholders is the last barrier to the deal moving forward.The companies disclosed the matter in two different filings Wednesday with the U.S.