Warner Bros CEO Reveals Exciting Plans for Harry Potter Franchise: A Bright Future After Fantastic Beasts

Summary

Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zazlav believes the Harry Potter franchise still holds significant value and can help propel the company to success.

Zazlav views the forthcoming HBO adaptation of Harry Potter as a highly effective approach to rejuvenate the franchise. Warner Bros., committed to utilizing their top resources and collaborating with top-notch creative minds, envisions leveraging their unutilized intellectual properties, such as Harry Potter, DC, and Lord of the Rings, to establish themselves as the highest-performing studio globally.

Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zazlav has expressed his views on the Harry Potter franchise following the disappointment of Fantastic Beasts. The original Harry Potter movies generated an impressive $7.7 billion in box office revenue and attracted a whole new generation of fans. In contrast, the Fantastic Beasts series struggled and only earned $1.865 billion across three films.

During his speech at the Goldman Sachs Communacopia and Technology Conference, Zazlav acknowledged that discontinuing the Harry Potter franchise was a mistake. He emphasized his belief in the value of the intellectual property (IP) and its potential to revive Warner Bros.' success. Zazlav sees the upcoming HBO adaptation as a promising strategy and aims to develop a comprehensive plan for the DC Universe. Additionally, he intends to create more Lord of the Rings movies while maintaining the quality of the content. Here is a quote from Zazlav:

"I still believe in the Harry Potter franchise's potential and view it as a valuable asset for Warner Bros. Our upcoming HBO adaptation presents a great opportunity, and I am committed to devising a thorough plan for the DC Universe. Furthermore, I aspire to create more Lord of the Rings movies that preserve the essence of the beloved series."

Warner Bros. possesses great intellectual property (IP) assets, including 'Harry Potter', DC, and 'Lord of the Rings'. However, we have not fully utilized this content in recent years. It has been more than a decade since we last produced anything related to 'Harry Potter', and we have also neglected 'Lord of the Rings'. We believe that there is significant shareholder value in creating a 10-year plan for DC, bringing back 'Harry Potter' on HBO for a decade, and producing multiple movies based on 'Lord of the Rings'. By revitalizing these franchises, Warner Bros. can become the top-performing studio worldwide. To achieve this, we must allocate our best resources, including capital and creative talent.

Source: The Wrap