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| File:Warner Bros. Pictures 2019.png Logo used since the 2019 rebrand | |
| Formerly | Warner Bros. Pictures, Inc. (1923–1967) Warner Bros.-Seven Arts, Inc. (1967–1969) Warner Bros. Inc. (1969–1992) |
|---|---|
| Type | Division |
| Industry | Entertainment |
| Predecessor | Warner Features Company |
| Founded | April 4, 1923[1] |
| Founders |
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| Headquarters | 4000 Warner Boulevard,, , |
Area served | Worldwide |
Key people |
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| Products | Films |
| Revenue |  US$13.866 billion (2017)[2] |
Operating income | US$1.761 billion (2017)[2] |
| Owner | WarnerMedia Studios & Networks Group (WarnerMedia a subsidiary of AT&T) |
Number of employees | Est. 8,000 (2014)[3] |
| Parent | Warner Bros. Pictures Group (Warner Bros.) |
| Website | www |
Warner Bros. Pictures is an American film production and distribution company owned by the WarnerMedia Studios & Networks Group. Headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, it is the flagship label of the Warner Bros. Pictures Group division of Warner Bros. Entertainment, itself a division of AT&T's WarnerMedia. Founded in 1923 by Harry Warner, Albert Warner, Sam Warner, and Jack L. Warner, in addition to producing its own films, it handles filmmaking operations, theatrical distribution, marketing and promotion for films produced and released by other Warner Bros. labels, including Warner Bros. Animation, Warner Animation Group, New Line Cinema, DC Films, and Castle Rock Entertainment, as well as various third-party producers.
History[]
| File:Wiki letter w cropped.svg | This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (May 2020) |
In 1927, Warner Bros. Pictures revolutionized the film industry when they released the first "talkie" The Jazz Singer starring Al Jolson. Unfortunately, founding member Sam Warner died prior to the premiere of the film.[4] From 1923 to 1967, Warner Bros. was known as Warner Bros. Pictures, Inc. as their main focus was entirely on the motion picture industry. When the company diversified over the years, it was eventually rebranded to its current umbrella name, but Warner Bros. Pictures continued to be used as the name of the film production arm of the company.
Warner Bros. Pictures[]
The division was incorporated as Warner Bros. Pictures on March 3, 2003 to diversify film subjects and expand audiences for their film releases.[5] The company became part of the Warner Bros. Pictures Group, which was established in 2008, and Jeff Robinov was appointed the first president of the company.[6] In 2017, longtime New Line executive Toby Emmerich joined as president. In January 2018, he was elevated to chairman.[7][8] On October 23, 2018 it was announced Lynne Frank, President of Warner Bros. Pictures Group, would be leaving the company to pursue new opportunities.[9] In June 2019, Warner Bros. Pictures signed an agreement with SF Studios to have their films distributed in Sweden, Denmark, Norway, and Finland.[10]
As with most other film distributors, Warner Bros. Pictures struggled with releasing films during the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic due to restrictions on theater openings. After pushing several films planned for 2020 into 2021, WB announced in December 2020 that they would take the unusual approach of having their entire slate of 2021 films planned for both theatrical release as well as having a simultaneous one-month period of availability on the HBO Max streaming service, in a similar manner for how they were releasing Wonder Woman 1984 that month. After one month, such films would still be available in theaters and would then later be available via home media under typical release schedules.[11] The move to include streaming was criticized by production companies, directors, and actors on concerns of lower payouts due to the streaming options,[12] leading Warner Bros. Pictures to alter its compensation rates for the affected films by January 2021 to provide larger payouts to casts and crews of these films.[13]
Film library[]
Gate 4, Warner Bros. Studios, looking south towards the water tower
Acquired libraries[]
Template:Overly detailed Mergers and acquisitions have helped Warner Bros. accumulate a diverse collection of films, cartoons and television programs. As of 2019, Warner Bros. owned more than 100,000 hours of programming, including 8,600 feature films and 5,000 television programs comprising tens of thousands of individual episodes.[14]
In the aftermath of the 1948 antitrust suit, uncertain times led Warner Bros. in 1956 to sell most of its pre-1950[15][16][17] films and cartoons to Associated Artists Productions (a.a.p.). In addition, a.a.p. also obtained the Fleischer Studios and Famous Studios Popeye cartoons, originally from Paramount Pictures. Two years later, a.a.p. was sold to United Artists, which owned the company until 1981, when Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer acquired United Artists.[18][19]
In 1982, during their independent years, Turner Broadcasting System acquired Brut Productions, the film production arm of France-based then-struggling personal-care company Faberge Inc.[20]
In 1986, Turner Broadcasting System acquired Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. Finding itself in debt, Turner Entertainment kept the pre-May 1986 MGM film and television libraries and a small portion of the United Artists library (including the a.a.p. library and North American rights to the RKO Radio Pictures library) while spinning off the rest of MGM.[21]
In 1989, Warner Communications acquired Lorimar-Telepictures Corporation.[22][23] Lorimar's catalogue included the post-1974 library of Rankin/Bass Productions, and the post-1947 library of Monogram Pictures/Allied Artists Pictures Corporation.
In 1991, Turner Broadcasting System acquired animation studio Hanna-Barbera and the Ruby-Spears library from Great American Broadcasting, and years later, Turner Broadcasting System acquired Castle Rock Entertainment on December 22, 1993[24][25] and New Line Cinema on January 28, 1994.[26][27] On October 10, 1996, Time Warner acquired Turner Broadcasting System, thus bringing Warner Bros.' pre-1950 library back home. In addition, Warner Bros. only owns Castle Rock Entertainment's post-1994 library.
In 2008, Time Warner integrated New Line to Warner Bros.
In June 2016, it created the Harry Potter Global Franchise Development Team to oversee its ownership of the Harry Potter franchise worldwide (including the Wizarding World trademark).[28]
- Warner Bros
- Warner Bros Pictures library (post-1950, 1950-present)
- Warner Bros. Television Studios library (1955-present)
- Alloy Entertainment library (2005-present)
- Telepictures library (1979-present)
- Rankin/Bass Productions library (post 1974. 1974-1989, 1999-2001)
- Lorimar Television library (1971-1993)
- Warner Animation Group library (2013-present)
- Warner Bros. Feature Animation library (1990-2004)
- Warner Bros Animation library (1980-present)
- Warner Bros. Cartoons library (post-1950, 1950-1969)
- Warner Bros. Family Entertainment library (1992-2009)
- Warner Premiere library (2007-2014)
- Hanna-Barbara library (1957-2001)
- Ruby-Spears Enterprises library (Pre 1991)
- Cartoon Network Studios library (1996-present)
- Adult Swim/Williams Street library (1994-present)
- New Line Cinema library (1967-present)
- New Line Television library (1988-2008)
- Castle Rock Entertainment films library (post-1994, 1994-present)
- Castle Rock Entertainment television library (post-1994, 1994-present)
- DC Films (2016-present)
- HBO Films libraries, co-owned by HBO (1983-presents)
- Turner Entertainment
- MGM film library (pre-May 1986)
- MGM Television library (pre-1985)
- MGM Cartoons library (pre-1967)
- United Artists/Associated Artists Productions libraries:
- Warner Bros Pictures library (pre-1950)
- First National Pictures library (1923-1936)
- Warner Bros. Cartoons library (pre-August 1948)
- Fleischer Studios/Famous Studios Popeye cartoons (1933-1957)
- Warner Bros Pictures library (pre-1950)
- RKO Pictures live action library's US, Canadian, UK, Australian, German and Italian distribution rights (pre-1960)
- Brut Productions library (1973-1982)
- MGM film library (pre-May 1986)
Filmography[]
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The studio's first live-action film was My Four Years in Germany (1918), their first animated film was Gay Purr-ee (1962). Animated films produced by Warner Bros. Animation, and the Warner Animation Group are also released by Warner Bros. Pictures. The studio has released twenty-five films that have received an Academy Award for Best Picture nomination: Disraeli (1929), I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang (1932), 42nd Street (1933), Here Comes the Navy (1934), A Midsummer Night's Dream (1935), Anthony Adverse (1936), The Life of Emile Zola (1937), The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938), Four Daughters (1938), Jezebel (1938), Dark Victory (1939), to name a few.
Highest-grossing films[]
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Notes[]
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- Page Template:Citation/styles.css has no content.^ co-owned by New Line Cinema and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures (the film's producers)
References[]
- ↑ "Company history". Warnerbros.com. Archived from the original on October 16, 2015. Retrieved April 9, 2014.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 "2017 Annual Report" (PDF). Time Warner. 2018. Archived (PDF) from the original on July 8, 2018. Retrieved April 26, 2019.
- ↑ Patten, Dominic; Yamato, Jen. "Warner Bros Layoffs Long Planned But "Accelerated" By Failed Fox Bid". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on September 6, 2014. Retrieved September 6, 2014.
- ↑ "Warner, Movie Magnate, Dies: Sam Warner, Former Youngstown Man, Rose from Obscurity to Leader in Field". The Youngstown Daily Vindicator. October 5, 1927.
- ↑ "Business Entity Detail: Warner Bros. Pictures (search on Entity Number: C2502930)". California Business Search. California Secretary of State. Retrieved June 19, 2019.
- ↑ Halbfinger, David (November 27, 2007). "Warner's Production Chief to Also Oversee Distribution". Archived from the original on December 19, 2019.
- ↑ Lang, Brent (2018-01-09). "Warner Bros. Shake-Up: Toby Emmerich Named Film Chairman, Sue Kroll Out". Variety. Retrieved 2020-02-07.
- ↑ "Warner Bros. Shake-Up: Toby Emmerich Named Film Chairman, Sue Kroll Out". Variety. January 9, 2018.
- ↑ "Warner Bros International Marketing President Lynne Frank To Exit". Deadline. October 23, 2018.
- ↑ "Warner Bros, SF Studios Expand Distribution Deal Across Scandinavia". Variety. June 25, 2019.
- ↑ Rubin, Rebecca; Donnelly, Matt (December 3, 2020). "Warner Bros. to Debut Entire 2021 Film Slate, Including 'Dune' and 'Matrix 4,' Both on HBO Max and In Theaters". Variety. Retrieved December 3, 2020.
- ↑ Barnes, Brooks; Sperling, Nicole (December 7, 2020). "Trading Box Office for Streaming, but Stars Still Want Their Money". The New York Times. Retrieved January 18, 2021.
- ↑ Shaw, Lucas; Gilbolm, Kelly (January 9, 2021). "Warner Bros. Guarantees Filmmakers a Payday for HBO Max Movies". Bloomberg News. Retrieved January 18, 2021.
- ↑ "WarnerBros.com – Company Overview". Warner Bros. Archived from the original on September 29, 2019. Retrieved September 29, 2019.
- ↑ Schickel & Perry 2008, p. 255
- ↑ WB retained a pair of features from 1949 that they merely distributed, and all short subjects released on or after September 1, 1948; in addition to all cartoons released in August 1948
- ↑ "Media History Digital Library". archive.org. Archived from the original on March 25, 2019. Retrieved September 17, 2019.
- ↑ Hoyt, Eric (2014-07-03). Hollywood Vault: Film Libraries Before Home Video. Univ of California Press. ISBN 978-0-520-95857-9.
- ↑ Cole, Robert J. (May 16, 1981). "M-G-M Is Reported Purchasing United Artists for $350 million". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on September 8, 2016. Retrieved October 26, 2016.
- ↑ "Faberge Sells Brut's Assets". The New York Times. Archived from the original on July 1, 2017. Retrieved November 27, 2014.
- ↑ "Turner Sells Fabled MGM but Keeps a Lion's Share". Los Angeles Times. 1985-12-20. Archived from the original on August 1, 2017. Retrieved 2018-02-02.
- ↑ "Crash Landing Merv Adelson—TV mogul, multimillionaire, and friend of the famous—lived a show-business fantasy. His bankruptcy has shocked Hollywood. – November 10, 2003". cnn.com. Archived from the original on January 26, 2013. Retrieved September 2, 2015.
- ↑ "Warner Completes Merger With Lorimar Telepictures". The Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on November 3, 2012. Retrieved 2010-10-23.
- ↑ "Turner Broadcasting Company Report". sec.gov. Securities and Exchange Commission. Archived from the original on July 10, 2017. Retrieved November 8, 2017.
- ↑ "Done deal: Turner Broadcasting System Inc. said it closed..." Chicage Tribune. Archived from the original on March 2, 2016. Retrieved September 2, 2015.
- ↑ "New Line to Join Ted Turner Empire Today : Film: With more money, the company is likely to add a few big movies to its annual production schedule". Los Angeles Times. 1994-01-28. Archived from the original on March 25, 2019. Retrieved 2019-10-30.
- ↑ "New Line Cinema". ethicalbusinessbureau.com. Archived from the original on 2016-03-02. Retrieved 2019-10-30.
- ↑ Barraclough, Leo (June 8, 2016). "Warner Bros. Completes Harry Potter Franchise Team With Polly Cochrane Promotion". Variety. Archived from the original on December 1, 2017. Retrieved December 12, 2017.
- ↑ "About". Warner Bros. Retrieved September 16, 2020.
- ↑ Masters, Kim (June 21, 2017). "Warner Bros. Eyes Slimmed-Down Movie Budgets Under Toby Emmerich". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved September 16, 2020.
- ↑ "Box Office by Studio – Warner Bros. All Time". Box Office Mojo. Archived from the original on August 16, 2017. Retrieved 15 August 2017.
External links[]
Template:Film Studio Template:Warner Bros. Template:WarnerMedia