Newly-minted WarnerMedia CEO Jason Kilar has been hired at a time when the entire industry seems to be on the brink of collapse. That’s one hell of a situation to inherit for the former Hulu boss. However, in a new interview with Deadline, Kilar talked about what’s going on in the industry, due to the global effect of the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic, and what he thinks the future is going to look like for the film and TV industry. You’d be shocked to hear that the former Hulu executive sees a bright future with streaming, right?
Just announced as the CEO of one of the largest media studios in the world, Kilar is taking over a situation that includes the worldwide shutdown of film and TV productions, theater closures around the world, and the upcoming launch of his company’s biggest streaming product to date, HBO Max. So, it’s clear that Kilar has quite a bit on his plate. But he’s optimistic.
In regards to HBO Max and the idea that streaming will soon take over all of TV, leaving traditional cable and networks in the dust, the CEO isn’t so sure that’s actually going to happen anytime soon.
“I do have faith that people will continue to care about sports, that advertisers will want and need to put their messages before audiences at scale,” he said. “I am also very much a believer that consumer behavior changes in time” and satisfying it “will be our job as leaders and builders.”
However, it’s clear that streaming is the future. And not just for TV. The COVID-19 pandemic has shown us that, if needed, film studios will skip the theater model and go straight to VOD, or at least arrive on digital really quickly, as with WarnerMedia’s “Birds of Prey.” But again, Kilar thinks that what we’re seeing now isn’t necessarily a trial run of what the future might like, but something that is a necessity to assure business can continue.
“It doesn’t seem like an experiment, more a pragmatic realization that given the situation it was the right thing to do,” the new CEO said. But, “I feel strongly that the next 10 years will look very different than the previous 10 years. I do think that every aspect of the WarnerMedia business [and others] will look different.”
That being said, let’s be real, WarnerMedia is now being led by a guy with a streaming background. It’s clear what the company believes the future will look like. It’s just a matter of when.