Warner Bros. Film Heads De Luca and Abdy to Exit as Paramount Merger Closes

Warner Bros. Motion Picture Group co-chairs and chief executives Michael De Luca and Pamela Abdy are leaving the studio as the 110 billion dollar merger between Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery nears completion, according to reports by Puck and Variety.

De Luca and Abdy joined Warner Bros. in July 2022. Although their employment contracts were recently renewed through 2030, they will not transition into the merged company and will instead have their contracts paid out.

Film Leadership Centralized Under Paramount

David Ellison is set to lead the combined company alongside former Mattel chief executive Ynon Kreiz. Film operations across both Warner Bros. and Paramount will be centralized under Paramount Pictures co-chairs Josh Greenstein and Dana Goldberg. Reporting indicates that an executive will be hired or promoted to manage the Warner Bros. label under Greenstein and Goldberg, though no candidate has been named.

The combined company aims to release roughly 30 theatrical features annually across its studio banners while pursuing 6 billion dollars in operational cost savings.

The leadership changes follow court approval granted on September 30, 2026, by U.S. District Judge Araceli Martinez-Olguin for a settlement between Paramount and 12 state attorneys general. That approval cleared the final major regulatory hurdle, setting the formal corporate closing for Tuesday, October 6, 2026.

Status of DC Studios

While De Luca and Abdy are stepping down, DC Studios heads James Gunn and Peter Safran have been invited to remain in their roles, at least initially, according to Puck. Gunn's current contract extends through 2027, leaving the unit's long-term autonomy beyond that date unconfirmed.

On October 1, outgoing Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav hosted a farewell gathering at his Beverly Hills home attended by De Luca, Abdy, Gunn, and Safran. Zaslav is set to receive up to 800 million dollars in stock and bonuses upon the deal's closing. As of October 1, Ellison had not yet formally delivered the departure news to De Luca and Abdy, with direct calls expected before October 6.

Final Release Under Current Leadership

The departures coincide with Warner Bros.' final theatrical release before the merger closes: Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu's "Digger," starring Tom Cruise, which opened on October 2.

At the film's premiere, Cruise reflected on De Luca and Abdy's swift backing of the project: "You didn't even take a breath when we brought you this film. I don't even think you turned the page on it. You're just like—you're in."

"Digger" enters theaters with conflicting budget reports, cited at 125 million dollars by studio sources and 180 million dollars by other industry reporting, against domestic opening weekend tracking estimates between 10 million and 15 million dollars.