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In only six months, Warner Bros has transformed from a struggling Hollywood powerhouse, reportedly considering a leadership shift, into the most sought-after studio in the industry — and a potential target for a $70 billion acquisition offer.

Following a series of successful films including “Superman,” “A Minecraft Movie,” and “Sinners” — along with the praised “One Battle After Another” featuring Leonardo DiCaprio — Warner Bros Discovery’s film division became the first studio to reach $4 billion in box office earnings this year.

It marks a significant shift from just a few months ago, when Warner was struggling with costly failures such as “Mickey 17” and its highly criticized and controversial “Joker” sequel.

We’re contributing our share,” said Michael De Luca, co-head of a film studio, on Thursday during an interview at the Bloomberg Screentime summit in Los Angeles, which was referred to by trade media as a “victory lap.

“If a studio experiences a successful period, spirits are lifted,” he stated.

Prominent film enthusiasts De Luca and studio executive Pamela Abdy were lured away from Warner’s smaller competitor MGM in 2022.

By this spring, the duo was said to be heading for a split, with CEO David Zaslav reportedly holding discussions with possible replacements.

This week, their agreements were extended.

“We are unable to comment on the speculation and rumors, along with everything else,” said Abdy.

The only thing I can mention is that David, Mike, and I were fortunate enough to watch all these films in advance. We understood the talent of the directors and the strength of these narratives, and we were eager for the public to experience them.

Horror hits

Although Warner has typically lagged behind competitors such as Disney and Universal in recent years, it has achieved nine films that debuted at the number one position on the box office charts this year — a higher count than any other studio.

That list featured “Weapons,” one of several successful horror films released by Warner this year, during a period when the genre, which was previously doing well, has experienced poor results at competing studios.

Other horror films from Warner that achieved success were parts of two ongoing series: “Final Destination” and “The Conjuring.”

De Luca credited the achievement to introducing “fresh and creative” concepts, such as adding more humor to the violent “Final Destination” franchise.

“Regarding franchises that have been around for a long time, you really need to bring innovation to the genre,” said De Luca.

He stated: “None of them were reported. None of them involved a group of executives in a room saying ‘exploit the franchise’.”

Viewers can sense when something is not pre-made.

Takeover rumors

The unexpected success has occurred during a still-challenging period for the parent company Warner Bros Discovery, which resulted from a 2022 merger with Discovery.

In June, Zaslav declared that the company was once more undergoing a division, isolating its successful streaming and film departments from the declining television channels.

This has now been brought into doubt by a potentially even larger agreement.

In what could be the most recent and surprising shift in Hollywood’s ongoing game of musical chairs, Warner has come under the spotlight from Paramount — a company that was recently purchased by the billionaire tech family of Larry Ellison, the founder of Oracle and the world’s second-richest individual.

Larry’s son David Ellison, the newly appointed Paramount CEO, on Thursday chose not to comment on the speculated offer, but mentioned “there are numerous viable options available in the near future.”

He also argued for expanding efforts, to create “more films, more television shows” for audiences.

“Speculation is inevitable in our industry — we are experiencing a period of significant change,” stated Abdy.

You shouldn’t concentrate on that.