Warner Bros. facts for kids
Logo used since 2023
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Warner Bros.' studio offices in Burbank, California
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Trade name
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Warner Bros. |
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Formerly
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| Industry | Entertainment |
| Predecessor | Warner Features Company |
| Founded | April 4, 1923 |
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| Headquarters | 4000 Warner Blvd.,
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US
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Area served
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Worldwide |
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Key people
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| Revenue |  US$12.15 billion (2020) |
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Operating income
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US$2.07 billion (2020) |
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Number of employees
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est. 8,000 (2014) |
| Parent | Warner Bros. Discovery |
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Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (often called Warner Bros. or WB) is a major American film and entertainment company. Its main office is at the Warner Bros. Studios in Burbank, California. It is part of Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD).
Four brothers, Harry, Albert, Sam, and Jack Warner, started the company in 1923. Warner Bros. quickly became a leader in the American film industry. Over time, it grew to include animation, television, and video games. It is now one of the "Big Five" major American film studios.
The company is famous for its film division, the Warner Bros. Motion Picture Group. This group includes Warner Bros. Pictures, New Line Cinema, Warner Bros. Pictures Animation, Castle Rock Entertainment, and DC Studios. The Warner Bros. Television Group makes TV shows. Bugs Bunny, a character from the Looney Tunes cartoons, is the company's official mascot.
Contents
Warner Bros. Story
How It All Began
The company got its name from the four Warner brothers. Their original last names were Wonsal, Woron, and Wonskolaser. Harry, Albert, and Sam moved to the United States from Poland in 1889. Their father had moved to Baltimore, Maryland, a year earlier. Like many immigrant families, the older children changed their names to sound more American. Jack, the youngest brother, was born in Canada.
The three older brothers started in the movie theater business. They bought a movie projector and showed films in mining towns in Pennsylvania and Ohio. Sam and Albert Warner spent $150 to show early films like Life of an American Fireman and The Great Train Robbery. In 1903, they opened their first theater, the Cascade, in New Castle, Pennsylvania. Warner Bros. later helped save this historic building from being torn down.
In 1904, the Warners started the Duquesne Amusement & Supply Company in Pittsburgh. This company helped distribute films. By World War I, they began making their own movies. In the early 1920s, they got their first studio in Hollywood. Sam and Jack made the films. Harry and Albert managed the money and distribution in New York City.
Their first film shown across the country was My Four Years in Germany. On April 4, 1923, they officially became Warner Bros. Pictures, Incorporated.
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One important early deal was getting the rights to the play The Gold Diggers. But it was a dog, Rin Tin Tin, who really made them famous. Rin Tin Tin was brought from France after World War I. His third film, Where the North Begins, was a huge hit. Jack Warner signed the dog for $1,000 a week. Rin Tin Tin became the studio's biggest star. Jack called him "The Mortgage Lifter." This success also helped Darryl F. Zanuck become a top producer.
Even with Rin Tin Tin's success, Warner Bros. was still a smaller studio. Sam and Jack decided to hire Broadway actor John Barrymore for Beau Brummel. This film was also very successful. By the end of 1924, Warner Bros. was one of Hollywood's most successful independent studios. They competed with bigger studios like First National, Paramount, and MGM.
As the studio grew, it got financial support from Wall Street. In 1924, Goldman Sachs gave them a large loan. With this money, the Warners bought the Vitagraph Company, which had a distribution system across the country. In 1925, Warner Bros. also started a successful radio station, KFWB, in Los Angeles.
Sound, Color, and Style: 1925–1935
Warner Bros. was a leader in making films with synchronized sound, also known as "talking pictures" or "talkies." In 1925, Sam Warner pushed for the studio to add sound to their movies. By February 1926, the studio was losing money.
Harry Warner finally agreed to sound, but only for background music. The Warners signed a deal with Western Electric and created Vitaphone. In 1926, Vitaphone started making films with music and sound effects. A famous example is Don Juan starring John Barrymore. The film itself was silent, but it played many Vitaphone short films before it. To promote Don Juan, Harry bought a large theater in New York City and renamed it Warners' Theatre.
Don Juan opened on August 6, 1926. In the past, theaters hired orchestras to play music during films. With Vitaphone, Warner Bros. made eight short films with sound in 1926. Many other film companies doubted if sound was needed. Don Juan did not make back its money, and director Ernst Lubitsch left for MGM. By April 1927, Warner Bros. was struggling financially.
Because of their money problems, Warner Bros. took a big risk. They released The Jazz Singer starring Al Jolson. This movie had very little talking, but it featured Jolson singing with sound. It was a huge success! It marked the start of the "talking pictures" era and the end of silent movies. Sadly, Sam Warner died the night before the movie opened. Jack Warner became the sole head of film production. Sam's death deeply affected Jack, who kept tight control over the studio.
Thanks to The Jazz Singer, the studio had a lot of money. Jolson's next film, The Singing Fool, was also a hit. With these successful "talkies," Warner Bros. became a top studio. The brothers moved their studio to a much larger lot in Burbank. They also bought the Stanley Corporation, a big chain of movie theaters. This gave them a share in a rival studio, First National Pictures.
In 1928, Warner Bros. released Lights of New York, the first movie with all talking. Its success made the movie industry switch to sound almost overnight. By the end of 1929, all major studios were making only sound films. In 1929, First National Pictures released Noah's Ark with Warner Bros. It was expensive but made a profit.
In 1929, Warner Bros. also released On with the Show!, the first all-color, all-talking movie. This was followed by Gold Diggers of Broadway. The success of these films started a "color revolution" in movies. Many Warner Bros. films from 1929 to 1931 were in color, especially musicals.
In 1929, Warner Bros. bought the Skouras Brothers Enterprises theater chain. Spyros Skouras, who ran the chain, became the general manager of Warner Brothers' theaters in America. He turned their losses into profits. Harry Warner also made an adaptation of a Cole Porter musical, Fifty Million Frenchmen.
Warner Bros. gained full control of First National in 1929. The Justice Department allowed this if First National stayed a separate company. When the Great Depression hit, Warner got permission to merge the two studios. Warner Bros. then moved to the First National lot in Burbank. For many years, some Warner films were called 'A Warner Bros.–First National Picture' for tax reasons.
In late 1929, Jack Warner hired George Arliss for Disraeli, which was a hit. Arliss won an Academy Award for Best Actor and made nine more movies for the studio. In 1930, Harry bought more theaters in Atlantic City, even as the Great Depression began.
Harry also bought several music publishers to create Warner Bros. Music. In April 1930, Warner Bros. bought Brunswick Records. Harry also got radio companies and foreign sound patents. He put his son, Lewis, in charge of Warner Bros. Music.
By 1931, the Great Depression was hurting the studio. They lost $8 million that year and $14 million the next. In 1931, Lewis Warner died. Around this time, Zanuck hired screenwriter Wilson Mizner, who was difficult but valuable. Warner became more accepting of Mizner and invested in his restaurant. Mizner died in 1933.
By 1932, musicals were less popular. The studio had to cut musical numbers from many films. People started to link musicals with color, so studios stopped using color as much. Warner Bros. had a contract to make two more films in Technicolor. This led to the first color horror films: Doctor X (1932) and Mystery of the Wax Museum (1933).
In late 1931, Harry Warner rented the Teddington Studios in London, England. The studio made "quota quickies" for the British market. Irving Asher was the head producer. In 1934, Harry officially bought the Teddington Studios.
In February 1933, Warner Bros. made 42nd Street, a very successful musical directed by Lloyd Bacon. Bacon then directed other profitable musicals like Footlight Parade and Gold Diggers, which saved the company from bankruptcy. These musicals starred Ruby Keeler and Dick Powell and were mostly directed by Busby Berkeley. By late 1935, people were tired of musicals again. After the hit film Captain Blood, the studio focused on Errol Flynn swashbucklers.
Realistic Films and New Rules: 1930–1935
When musicals became less popular, Warner Bros., led by Zanuck, started making films with more realistic stories about society. Because of its many films about gangsters, Warner Bros. became known as a "gangster studio." The first gangster film, Little Caesar, was a big hit. Edward G. Robinson starred in many of these films. The next film, The Public Enemy, made James Cagney a top star.
Another famous gangster film was I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang. It was based on a true story and starred Paul Muni. This film made audiences question the American legal system. By January 1933, the film's main character, Robert Elliot Burns, and other chain gang prisoners were released.
After starring in The Man Who Played God, Bette Davis became a top star.
In 1933, the studio got some relief when Franklin D. Roosevelt became president and started the New Deal. This economic recovery helped Warner Bros. become profitable again. The same year, Zanuck left the studio. Harry Warner and Zanuck had disagreed about Zanuck's film Baby Face, which Harry felt went against the Hays Code. Harry also refused to restore Zanuck's salary after it was cut during the Depression. Zanuck then started his own company. Harry then raised salaries for other studio employees.
In 1933, Warner partnered with newspaper owner William Randolph Hearst's Cosmopolitan Films. Hearst had worked with MGM but left after a disagreement. Through this partnership, Warner signed actress Marion Davies to a contract. However, Hearst's films and Davies' movies did not increase the studio's profits.
In 1934, the studio lost over $2.5 million. A fire at the Burbank studio destroyed 20 years of early films. The next year, Hearst's film A Midsummer Night's Dream (1935) failed at the box office. Harry Warner and six other movie studio figures were accused of trying to control movie theaters in St. Louis. In 1935, Harry was on trial. After a mistrial, Harry sold the company's movie theaters, and the case was closed. In 1935, the studio made a profit of $674,158.
By 1936, contracts for musical and silent film stars were not renewed. Instead, the studio hired tough, working-class actors who fit the new realistic films better. Actors like Dorothy Mackaill and Alice White were replaced by James Cagney, Joan Blondell, Edward G. Robinson, and Barbara Stanwyck. Warner Bros. made many films before the Pre-Code rules were strictly enforced. After 1934, when censors became stricter, the studio faced problems. To avoid issues, Warner Bros. started making historical films around 1935. In 1936, after the success of The Petrified Forest, Jack signed Humphrey Bogart to a contract. However, Warner did not think Bogart was a star and often cast him as a villain.
After Hal B. Wallis took over from Zanuck in 1933, and the Hays Code was enforced in 1935, the studio had to change its realistic approach. They started making more moral and idealized films. The studio's historical dramas, melodramas (called "women's pictures"), swashbucklers, and book adaptations, starring actors like Bette Davis, Olivia de Havilland, Paul Muni, and Errol Flynn, helped them avoid the censors. In 1936, Bette Davis, a top star, was unhappy with her roles. She tried to break her contract in England but lost the lawsuit and returned to America.
The Code Era
In the 1930s, many actors from the realistic pre-Code era left the industry. Warner Bros. remained a top studio, but other studios like MGM soon became more famous. However, in the late 1930s, Bette Davis became the studio's biggest draw. She was even called "The Fifth Warner Brother."
In 1935, Cagney sued Jack Warner for breaking his contract. Cagney claimed Warner forced him to make more films than his contract allowed. Cagney eventually dropped the lawsuit after a cash payment. He left the studio to start his own film company with his brother Bill. Their films did not get enough money, so Cagney returned to Warner Bros. after Jack agreed to his terms. After the success of Yankee Doodle Dandy, Cagney again questioned his salary and left to form another company.
Another employee Jack Warner had trouble with was producer Bryan Foy. In 1936, Wallis hired Foy to produce the studio's low-budget B movies. Foy was very successful, but Warner fired him seven times during his time at the studio.
In 1936, The Story of Louis Pasteur was a box office hit. Its star, Paul Muni, won an Oscar for Best Actor in March 1937. The studio's 1937 film The Life of Emile Zola won the first of its seven Best Picture Oscars.
In 1937, the studio hired Ronald Reagan, a radio announcer from the Midwest. Reagan later became the President of the United States. He started as a B-film actor. Warner Bros. was impressed by his acting in Knute Rockne, All American. They paired him with Flynn in Santa Fe Trail (1940). Reagan then returned to B-films. After his performance in Kings Row (1942), Warner decided to make Reagan a top star and tripled his salary.
In 1936, Harry's daughter Doris wanted to make a film based on Margaret Mitchell's book Gone with the Wind. She offered Mitchell $50,000 for the film rights. Jack Warner stopped the deal, knowing it would be a very expensive movie.
Major Paramount star George Raft also caused problems for Jack. Warner signed him in 1939, bringing another top gangster actor to the studio. Raft had trouble working with Bogart and refused to star with him. Warner eventually released Raft from his contract in 1943. After Raft turned down the role, Bogart got the part of "Mad Dog" Roy Earle in High Sierra (1941), which helped make him a top star. After High Sierra and Raft again turning down a role, Bogart was given the lead in John Huston's successful 1941 remake of The Maltese Falcon.
Warner's Cartoons
Warner Bros.' cartoon division started with the Harman and Ising studio. From 1930 to 1933, Hugh Harman and Rudolf Ising made musical cartoons for Leon Schlesinger, who sold them to Warner. Harman and Ising created Bosko for Looney Tunes and started Merrie Melodies in 1931.
Harman and Ising left Schlesinger in 1933, taking Bosko with them to MGM. Schlesinger then started his own studio, Leon Schlesinger Productions. They continued Merrie Melodies and started Looney Tunes with a new character, Buddy. By the end of World War II, a new team of directors like Friz Freleng, Tex Avery, Bob Clampett, and Chuck Jones made the cartoons famous. Their cartoons had a fast, funny, and disrespectful style.
In 1935, Avery directed Porky Pig cartoons, making Porky the studio's first animated star. Other characters like Daffy Duck (1937), Elmer Fudd (1940), Bugs Bunny (1940), and Tweety (1942) also became stars. By 1942, the Schlesinger studio was more successful than Walt Disney Studios in making animated shorts.
Warner Bros. bought Schlesinger's cartoon unit in 1944 and renamed it Warner Bros. Cartoons. However, the studio's leaders didn't care much for the cartoon unit. Jack Warner mistakenly thought they made Mickey Mouse cartoons. He sold the rights to the cartoons made before August 1948 for only $3,000 each. This was a very bad deal, as those cartoons became very valuable later.
Warner Bros. Cartoons continued until 1969 when the company stopped making short films. Characters like Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Tweety, Sylvester, and Porky Pig became very important to the company's image. Bugs Bunny is still a mascot for Warner Bros. and Six Flags theme parks. In 1979, the success of The Bugs Bunny/Road Runner Movie led Warner Bros. to create Warner Bros. Animation to make new cartoons.
World War II Efforts
Before the US entered World War II, Philip Kauffman, Warner Bros.' German sales head, was killed by the Nazis in Berlin in 1936. Harry Warner then produced successful anti-German films like The Life of Emile Zola (1937) and Confessions of a Nazi Spy (1939). Harry decided to focus on making war films. Warner's cut its film production in half during the war.
During the war, the studio made famous films like Casablanca; Now, Voyager; Yankee Doodle Dandy (all 1942); This Is the Army, and Mission to Moscow (both 1943). At the premieres of Yankee Doodle Dandy, audiences bought $15.6 million in war bonds. By mid-1943, people were tired of war films, but Warner kept making them and lost money. To honor the studio's help, the Navy named a Liberty ship after the brothers' father, Benjamin Warner. By the end of the war, $20 million in war bonds were bought through the studio. The Red Cross collected 5,200 pints of blood plasma from studio employees. Also, 763 employees served in the armed forces.
In 1943, Olivia de Havilland sued Warner for breaking her contract. Warner often loaned her to other studios. She refused a role, and Warner warned other companies not to hire her. De Havilland found that California employment contracts could only last seven years. She had been under contract since 1935. The court sided with de Havilland, and she left the studio. Her victory freed many long-time actors from their contracts. Harry Warner then ended the studio's suspension policy.
The same year, Jack signed Joan Crawford, a former top star whose career was fading. Crawford's first role was in Hollywood Canteen (1944). Her first starring role in Mildred Pierce (1945) brought her career back and earned her an Oscar for Best Actress.
After World War II: Changes
After the war, Warner Bros. grew a lot and created new stars like Lauren Bacall and Doris Day. By 1946, the company's payroll was $600,000 a week. Jack Warner refused to meet Screen Actors Guild salary demands. In September 1946, employees went on a month-long strike. In response, Warner accused some employees of having ties to Communists during his 1947 testimony to Congress. By the end of 1947, the studio made a record profit of $22 million.
Warner bought Pathé News from RKO in 1947. On January 5, 1948, Warner offered the first color newsreel. In 1948, Bette Davis, still their top actress, left the studio after finishing Beyond the Forest.
Warner was part of the United States v. Paramount Pictures, Inc. antitrust case in the 1940s. The Justice Department said that the five big studios that owned both production companies and theater chains were limiting competition. The Supreme Court ruled against the studios in 1948. As a result, Warner and four other major studios had to separate their film production from their theater ownership. In 1949, the studio's profit dropped to $10 million.
In the early 1950s, television became a threat. In 1953, Jack decided to copy United Artists' successful 3D film Bwana Devil. He released his own 3D films, starting with House of Wax. However, 3D films quickly lost their popularity.
3D almost caused the Warner Bros. cartoon studio to close. After making a 3D Bugs Bunny cartoon, Lumber Jack-Rabbit, Jack Warner ordered the animation unit to shut down. He wrongly believed all future cartoons would be in 3D. Several months later, Warner changed his mind and reopened the cartoon studio.
In 1952, Warner Bros. made its first film (Carson City) in "Warnercolor," their name for Eastmancolor.
After 3D films failed, Harry Warner decided to use CinemaScope for future films. One of the first CinemaScope films, The High and the Mighty, helped the studio make a profit.
In early 1953, Warner's theater holdings were separated and became Stanley Warner Theaters.
By 1956, the studio was losing money. On February 13, 1956, Jack Warner sold the rights to all the studio's films made before 1950 to Associated Artists Productions (a.a.p.). This company later became part of Turner Broadcasting System in 1986.
In May 1956, the brothers announced they were selling Warner Bros. Jack secretly arranged for a group of investors to buy 90% of the stock. After the brothers sold, Jack secretly bought back all his stock. He then became the company's largest owner and appointed himself its new president. Jack said the company would focus on getting the best stories and talent to make the best movies.
TV and Music Ventures
By 1949, with television growing, Harry Warner wanted to focus on TV production. However, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) would not allow it. Harry gave up his TV plans after failing to convince other studio bosses.
Jack Warner had problems with Milton Berle's unsuccessful film Always Leave Them Laughing. Warner felt that Berle was not strong enough for a film because people could see him on TV for free. Jack was pressured to use Berle, who replaced Danny Kaye. Berle's behavior on set and the film's failure led Jack to ban TV sets from film sets and mentions of TV in scripts.
On March 21, 1955, the studio finally entered television through the successful Warner Bros. Television unit. It was run by William T. Orr, Jack Warner's son-in-law. Warner Bros. Television provided ABC with a weekly show, Warner Bros. Presents. This show featured rotating series based on films like Kings Row, Casablanca, and Cheyenne. It also promoted new films but was not a success.
The studio then made a weekly series out of Cheyenne. Cheyenne was the first hour-long Western on television. Two episodes were combined for release as a feature film outside the US. Following this, the studio quickly produced popular Westerns like Maverick, Sugarfoot, and Bronco. The success of these series helped make up for losses in the film business. Jack Warner then decided to focus on TV production. Warner's produced popular private detective shows like 77 Sunset Strip (1958–1964) and Hawaiian Eye (1959–1963).
Within a few years, the studio had problems with its TV stars, like Clint Walker and James Garner, who sued over contract disputes and won. Jack was angry about what he saw as their ingratitude. Many Warner TV stars also appeared in Warner films. In 1963, a court decision forced Warner Bros. to end contracts with their TV stars. That year, Jack Webb, famous for playing Sgt. Joe Friday in Dragnet, became the head of the studio's TV division.
In 1958, the studio started Warner Bros. Records. At first, the label released recordings by their TV stars and TV show soundtracks. Warner Bros. already owned many music publishing rights. In 2004, Time Warner sold the Warner Music Group, including Warner Bros. Records. In 2019, the record division was renamed Warner Records.
In 1963, Warner agreed to buy Frank Sinatra's Reprise Records. This deal gave Sinatra $1.5 million and part ownership of Warner Bros. Records. It also brought Morris "Mo" Ostin, Reprise's manager, into the company. In 1964, Warner decided to claim ownership of the studio's film soundtracks. In its first 18 months, Warner Bros. Records lost about $2 million.
New Owners Take Over
Warner Bros. improved in the late 1950s. They focused on adapting popular plays like The Bad Seed (1956) and Gypsy (1962).
After a car crash in France in 1958, Jack Warner slowly recovered. He made sure his name was in all studio press releases. From 1961 to 1963, the studio's annual profit was over $7 million. Warner paid a huge $5.5 million for the film rights to the Broadway musical My Fair Lady in February 1962. In 1963, the studio's profit dropped to $3.7 million. By the mid-1960s, film production was slowing down. The industry was changing from the Golden Age of Hollywood to the New Hollywood era.
The studio's 1964 film My Fair Lady and its soundtrack were very successful. This made Warner Bros. Records a profitable part of the company. The 1966 film Who's Afraid Of Virginia Woolf? was also a huge hit.
In November 1966, Jack Warner, due to his age and changing times, sold control of the studio and music business to Seven Arts Productions for $32 million. The company was renamed Warner Bros.-Seven Arts. Warner stayed president until summer 1967. After Camelot failed, he gave his position to Ben Kalmenson. Warner remained as an independent producer. With the 1967 success of Bonnie and Clyde, Warner Bros. became profitable again.
Two years later, Seven Arts sold the company to Kinney National Company for over $64 million. Kinney had already bought DC Comics and a talent agency, Ashley-Famous. The talent agency was later sold due to laws preventing a film studio from owning a talent agency. Ted Ashley became the studio head and changed the name back to Warner Bros. Inc.. Jack Warner was very angry about the sale. He moved into independent production and retired in 1973. He died in 1978.
Even though fewer people were going to movies, Warner's new management believed in the power of stars. They signed deals with big names like Paul Newman, Robert Redford, Barbra Streisand, and Clint Eastwood. This helped the studio succeed through the 1970s and 1980s. Hits in the early 1970s included films starring these actors, along with Mel Brooks' Blazing Saddles, Stanley Kubrick's A Clockwork Orange, and The Exorcist. Warner Bros. also made big profits from films and TV shows based on Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, and The Flash from DC Comics. In the 1970s, Warner Bros. Records became a major record label worldwide.
In late 1973, Warner Bros. teamed up with 20th Century Fox to make one film: The Towering Inferno. Both studios had rights to books about burning skyscrapers. They decided to combine their ideas into one movie. Fox handled distribution in the US, and Warner Bros. handled it overseas. This partnership led to the second-highest-grossing film of 1974 and influenced future collaborations between major studios.
Kinney, which had started with parking lots and funeral homes, renamed itself Warner Communications after its most famous holding. In the 1970s and 1980s, Warner Communications expanded into other businesses, like the video game company Atari, Inc. in 1976, and later the Six Flags theme parks.
In 1972, to save money, Warner and Columbia formed a third company called The Burbank Studios (TBS). They shared the Warner lot in Burbank. This meant TBS was responsible for the studio grounds. The Columbia Ranch was also part of the deal. The relationship between Warner and Columbia was difficult. However, their unwillingness to spend money on upgrades helped preserve the Warner lot for filmmaking. A famous film made at The Burbank Studios was Blade Runner (1982).
Most films made after 1968 were filmed on location. This was partly because Camelot failed, as it was set in England but clearly filmed in Burbank. Warner kept a large part of its backlot. Other studios sold their backlots or turned them into theme parks.
Robert A. Daly became chairman and Co-CEO of Warner Bros. on December 1, 1980. A year later, he was named chairman and CEO, and Terry Semel became President and COO.
Part of Time Warner
In 1989, Warner Communications merged with the publishing company Time Inc.. Time was seen as more prestigious, while Warner Bros. brought in the profits. The Time-Warner merger almost failed when Paramount Communications tried to buy Time Inc. for $12.2 billion. Time had to buy Warner with a $14.9 billion offer. Paramount sued to stop the merger but lost, and the merger went ahead.
In 1992, Warner Bros. Family Entertainment was created to make family-friendly films and animated movies. This label stopped being active in 2009. In 1994, Jon Peters, whose company had a deal with Sony Pictures, got another deal with Warner Bros. because he was friends with then-president Terry Samel.
In 1995, Warner Bros. and Tribune Company launched The WB Television Network. They wanted to reach teenage viewers. The WB's early shows included many teen dramas like Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Smallville, and Dawson's Creek. Two dramas, 7th Heaven and Charmed, helped make The WB famous. Charmed lasted eight seasons, and 7th Heaven ran for eleven seasons. In 2006, Warner Bros. and CBS Corporation decided to close The WB and CBS's UPN. They then jointly launched The CW Television Network.
In 1996, Turner Pictures became part of Warner Bros. through the Turner-Time Warner merger. This brought films like City of Angels and You've Got Mail to the studio. Later that year, Warner Bros. partnered with PolyGram Filmed Entertainment to distribute movies from Castle Rock Entertainment. Also in 1996, Bruce Berman left Warner Bros. to start Plan B Entertainment.
In 1998, Time Warner sold Six Flags theme parks. In 2000, AOL bought Time Warner, but it was not a good match. After the "dot-com" stock market crashed, the AOL name was removed.
In 1998, Warner Bros. celebrated its 75th anniversary. In 1999, Terry Semel and Robert Daly resigned as studio heads. They were known for popularizing partner financing and profit sharing for film production. In mid-1999, Alan F. Horn and Barry Meyer replaced them. In late 2003, Time Warner reorganized Warner Bros.' assets under Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. to separate the film studio from its record label (now Warner Records).
In the late 1990s, Warner Bros. got the rights to the Harry Potter novels. They released film adaptations of the books, starting with Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone in 2001. The series continued with films released in 2002, 2004, 2005, 2007, and 2009. The seventh book was split into two movies: Deathly Hallows – Part 1 in 2010 and Deathly Hallows – Part 2 in 2011.
From 2006, Warner Bros. worked with China Film Group Corporation and HG to form Warner China Film HG. This company made films in Hong Kong and China, like Connected.
Warner Bros. played a big part in the end of the HD DVD format. On January 4, 2008, Warner Bros. announced they would stop supporting HD DVD and only use Blu-ray.
The Harry Potter film series was the highest-grossing film series worldwide without adjusting for inflation. Its Batman film series was one of only two series to have two movies earn over $1 billion worldwide. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2 was Warner Bros.' highest-grossing movie ever. IMAX Corp. signed a deal with Warner Bros. Pictures in April 2010 to release up to 20 giant-format films.
On October 21, 2014, Warner Bros. created a digital content unit called Blue Ribbon Content. On November 17, 2016, Warner Bros. Digital Networks bought the online video company Machinima, Inc..
As of 2015, Warner Bros. is one of only three studios to have released two billion-dollar films in the same year. This happened in 2012 with The Dark Knight Rises and The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey. As of 2016, it is the only studio to earn over $1 billion at the domestic box office every year since 2000.
AT&T Ownership
In June 2018, AT&T bought Warner Bros.' parent company, Time Warner. It was renamed WarnerMedia. On October 16, 2018, WarnerMedia closed DramaFever, affecting 20 percent of Warner Bros.' digital networks staff.
On March 4, 2019, WarnerMedia announced a plan to reorganize. This plan moved Cartoon Network, Adult Swim, Boomerang, their studios, and Turner Classic Movies directly under Warner Bros. These assets now operate under the Global Kids & Young Adults division. On May 31, 2019, Otter Media was moved to WarnerMedia Entertainment to help develop HBO Max, a new streaming service.
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On November 13, 2019, Warner Bros. showed an updated version of its shield logo. It was designed by Pentagram for the company's 100th anniversary. The new logo is simpler and works better on different platforms. The company also created a new font based on the "WB" letters.
Warner Bros. and HBO Max announced the Warner Max film label on February 5, 2020. It was meant to produce eight to ten mid-budget movies per year for the streaming service. However, the label was stopped in October 2020 as part of a reorganization.
In February 2022, Village Roadshow, a co-financier of The Matrix Resurrections, sued Warner Bros. The lawsuit was about the film's release on both HBO Max and in theaters at the same time due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Village Roadshow claimed this decision hurt the movie's box office earnings. In May 2022, Village Roadshow agreed to discuss the issue with Warner Bros.
Warner Bros. Discovery
On April 8, 2022, AT&T separated WarnerMedia. It then merged with Discovery Inc. to form Warner Bros. Discovery. The new company is led by Discovery's CEO David Zaslav.
In March 2022, Warner Bros. started a campaign for its 100th anniversary in 2023, with the slogan "100 Years of Storytelling." In December 2022, the anniversary campaign officially launched with the new slogan "Celebrating Every Story." This campaign includes special events and initiatives across all Warner Bros. divisions. The campaign uses a new logo with an updated shield, which is softer, has thicker outlines, and uses blue and gold colors again. This updated shield is a secondary logo and is used along with the 2019 logo. As part of the 100th anniversary, the studio will release new short films for the Max streaming service that recreate Warner Bros. classics with a focus on diversity.
In November 2022, James Gunn and Peter Safran became the co-chairpersons and CEOs of DC Films, which was renamed "DC Studios." This studio also became an independent division of Warner Bros.
Company Structure
Warner Bros. Entertainment has three main business parts, called "divisions": Motion Picture Group, Television, and other entertainment assets. The "other entertainment assets" include Digital Networks, Technology, Live Theatre, and Studio Facilities.
The Motion Pictures division includes the company's main film units, such as Warner Bros. Pictures, New Line Cinema, DC Studios, and Castle Rock Entertainment.
| Motion Picture Group | Television Group | Entertainment |
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Company Leaders
- Chairman of the board
- Robert A. Daly (1980–1999)
- Barry Meyer (1999–2013)
- Kevin Tsujihara (2013–2019)
- Ann Sarnoff (2019–2022)
- Vice chairman
- Edward A. Romano (1994–2016)
- Presidents
- Terry Semel (1994–1999)
- Chief executive officers
- Robert A. Daly (1980–1999)
- Barry Meyer (1999–2013)
- Kevin Tsujihara (2013–2019)
- Ann Sarnoff (2019–2022)
- Chief operating officers
- Terry Semel (1982–1994)
- Barry Meyer (1994–1999)
International Film Deals
From 1971 to 1987, Warner's international film distribution was a joint effort with Columbia Pictures. In some countries, this partnership also distributed films from other companies. Warner ended this partnership in 1988.
On May 4, 1987, Buena Vista Pictures Distribution signed a deal with Warner Bros. International. This deal was for releasing Disney, Touchstone, and Hollywood Pictures films in other countries. Disney kept full control over how their films were distributed and marketed. In 1992, Disney decided to end this joint venture and distribute their films on their own.
On February 6, 2014, Columbia TriStar Warner Filmes de Portugal Ltda., a joint company with Sony Pictures, announced it would close. This company distributed both companies' films in Portugal. Since then, NOS Audiovisuais handles Warner Bros. films in Portugal. Big Picture Films handles Sony Pictures films.
Warner Bros. still distributes Sony Pictures films in Italy.
Since January 1, 2021, Universal Pictures distributes Warner Bros. films in Hong Kong. This happened because WarnerMedia closed its Hong Kong theatrical office. As of 2024, Warner Bros. distributes Universal Pictures films in Brazil, India, and the Philippines.
In August 2022, Warner Bros. Pictures made a multi-year deal to distribute MGM films outside the United States. This includes home entertainment. The contract involves both companies working together on marketing, advertising, and distribution for future MGM movies.
Film Collection
Mergers and acquisitions have helped Warner Bros. gather a large collection of films, cartoons, and TV shows. As of 2022, Warner Bros. owned over 145,000 hours of programming. This includes 12,500 feature films and 2,400 TV programs with tens of thousands of episodes.
After the 1948 antitrust lawsuit, Warner Bros. sold most of its films and cartoons made before 1950 to Associated Artists Productions (a.a.p.) in 1956. A.a.p. also got the Popeye cartoons from Fleischer Studios and Famous Studios. Two years later, a.a.p. was sold to United Artists (UA). In 1981, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) bought United Artists.
In 1982, Turner Broadcasting System bought Brut Productions, a film company.
In 1986, Turner Broadcasting System bought MGM. Turner Entertainment kept the MGM film and TV libraries made before May 1986. They also kept a small part of the United Artists library, including the a.a.p. library.
In 1989, Warner Communications bought Lorimar-Telepictures Corporation. Lorimar's collection included films from Rankin/Bass Productions and Monogram Pictures/Allied Artists Pictures Corporation.
In 1991, Turner Broadcasting System bought animation studios Hanna-Barbera and Ruby-Spears. Years later, Turner Broadcasting System bought Castle Rock Entertainment in 1993 and New Line Cinema in 1994. On October 10, 1996, Time Warner bought Turner Broadcasting System. This brought Warner Bros.' pre-1950 film library back home. However, Warner Bros. only owns Castle Rock Entertainment's films made after 1994. In 2008, Time Warner combined New Line Cinema with Warner Bros. Pictures.
The Warner Bros. Archives
The University of Southern California Warner Bros. Archives is the largest single studio collection in the world. It was given to USC's School of Cinema-Television in 1977 by Warner Communications. The Archives hold records that detail Warner Bros.' activities from its first major film, My Four Years in Germany (1918), until its sale in 1968. It shows a complete picture of how films were made during the Golden Age of Hollywood. UA donated pre-1950 Warner Bros. film negatives to the Library of Congress. Post-1951 negatives went to the UCLA Film and Television Archive. Most of the company's legal files, scripts, and production materials were given to the Wisconsin Center for Film and Theater Research.
See Also
In Spanish: Warner Bros. para niños
- Warner Bros. Studios, Burbank
- Warner Bros. Studio Tour Hollywood
- Warner Bros. Home Entertainment
- Warner Bros. Family Entertainment
- Warner Bros. Television Studios
- Warner Bros. Discovery Global Brands and Experiences
- Warner Records
- List of Warner Bros. short subjects
- Warner Bros. Animation
- Warner Bros. Studios, Leavesden
