Warner Bros. Discovery Has Been “Really Shut Down” By Strikes, CFO Says, But Free Cash Flow Is Rising As Company Is “Unable To Deploy Capital” For Production
deadline.comWarner Bros. Discovery CFO Gunnar Wiedenfels echoed recent sentiments from Netflix and other major TV and film producers, saying the industry must resolve the ongoing strikes and “get back to work.” That’s easier said than done, of course, with the WGA and SAG-AFTRA both dug in and little movement in talks with the AMPTP.
Predictions of a breakthrough by Labor Day have given way to pessimism about a deal getting done at all this fall. Appearing virtually at an investor conference hosted by BofA Securities, Wiedenfels called the strikes “an unfortunate situation.” WBD CEO David Zaslav, he said, “is spending a lot of his time with his peers on trying to resolve it as quickly as possible.
Content is the backbone of what we do. We’ve got to get back to work, and we have to find a way to get to a solution that’s fair and makes everybody feel respected and rewarded fairly.
That’s the No. 1 priority here.” Last week, the company stated in an SEC filing that its EBITDA would take a hit of $300 million to $500 million in 2023 due to the labor impasse. “From an operational/financial perspective,” Wiedenfels said, “we’re really shut down.
Read more on deadline.com
