2for Warner Bros).
DEADLINE:Youve both been around long enough to have taken punches and scored successes as execs and producers.
DE LUCA: We are veterans and you do develop a thick skin as you roll along here.
(L-R) Mike De Luca, Co-Chairperson and CEO, Warner Bros. Film Group, and Pam Abdy, Co-Chairperson and CEO, Warner Bros. Film GroupPhillip Faraone/Getty Images
And these jobs come with a certain amount of scrutiny.
We were given a mandate to take swings with original material, with the worlds best storytellers.
And those kind of films are always going to get the most scrutiny.
Michael B. Jordan with Ryan Coogler on the set of ‘Sinners’Warner Bros.
That just comes with the territory.
So we just venture to stay focused on doing the work.
Its still the same idea of picking right.
Sometimes youre going to pick winners, sometimes youre not.
Sometimes youre going to pick movies that are critically applauded and then dont find an audience.
I think thats what has become a little more challenging.
It lifts the pressure of it all, but I think that makes the job still exciting.
But Im from Jersey and hes from Brooklyn and we can handle the hits.
Youve won big properties on the auction block from CooglersSinnersto Emerald FennellsWuthering Heights.
Its part of the studios DNA.
When we arrived, we were given an unambiguous mandate to continue that tradition.
Were proud of that legacy.
Its unique really amongst the legacy studios in its consistency over the last half century.
And its definitely not for the faint of heart, but thats okay.
Talents like Ryan and Paul remove a lot of the risk, through sheer excellence and artistry.
Planting with this film and going on a decades-long run with him for the future.
That will be the true measure of success.
DEADLINE:That would be the big win.
You clearly had to agree to an exceptional deal to getSinners.
Why in your mind was it worth it?
DE LUCA: Ryan is what makes it special.
Ryan is an incredibly special artist.
The deal Ryan made forSinnerswas unique to the competitive atmosphere aroundSinners.
It has never been a bad strategy, it has never been a bad business plan.
Alan Horn did this and before him, Steve Ross did this with the relationship with Clint and others.
And Bob Daly and Terry Semel and the relationship with Clint and Kubrick.
Its a good business plan and it is a long-term strategy.
You cant apply short-term thinking to it.
I think thats really dangerous.
Its not a movie by movie strategy.
You cant overreact to ones that under-perform and you cant overreact to ones that perform.
Thats the end goal.
DEADLINE:Ryan Coogler told Deadline that he felt the studios embrace in makingSinnerson the scale he desired.
What about the filmSinnersmakes you feel excited about making this bet?
ABDY: It is elevated genre, which is genre that has a lot on its mind.
Ryan, to me, is honestly one of the greats.
The movie plays like a big genre, yelling-at-the-screen key in of movie.
Weve seen it play that way with audiences.
Youve seen it, Mike, right?
DEADLINE:I saw it.
And I think its a ride that audiences will love.
They need to go to the theater and watch it together.
And you cant get that any other way but in the theater.
DEADLINE:An observation, and you tell me if it is fair.
DE LUCA: Its a big priority for us.
So its a big priority for us.
I do think its an element of what were doing.
We believe in a diversified slate.
Its the directors too.
That is what Im trying to say.
That has gotten a little bit of disproportionate attention.
Thats the thing thats not ever looked at.
It is just two movies, but you have to look beyond that.
ABDY:Thats an advantage that other places dont have.
DE LUCA: Thats what Alan and Jeff Robinov did with Chris Nolan andDark Knight.
DEADLINE:Are there specific examples where big talent has been matched with library IP?
DE LUCA: Yes.
Drew Goddard, writing and directingThe Matrix.
Others we cant talk about yet.
ABDY: Dont forget Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman onPractical Magic…
DEADLINE:Heres the hard part of playing the long game with filmmaker relationships; not everything works.
He held fast and threw his fee in and became an investor of a film he made his way.
Thats three films that grossed over $700 million globally.
Phillips is in the same position with his radical vision ofJokerand he again becomes an equity holder.
Let him go make the movie.
Is that an unrealistic viewpoint in this day in age?
And we really believe in ours.
DE LUCA: Yeah, totally.
And we believe the same about Todd Phillips.
Its framed and hangs over his desk.
We found it very inspiring that he keeps it framed in his office.
After all, Im not going to be here forever.
How do you feel about the credit grabbing narrative?
DE LUCA: Again, we have a veterans mentality, and pretty thick skin.
It is nothing but a good news story to us.
No matter what version of the story is written, theres no bad news here.
Everybody did their jobs, incredibly well.
The project was here for 12 years, and had trouble getting made.
I think Pam and I did our jobs well, recognizing that it should be fast tracked.
I think Jesse Ehrman is an unsung hero here.
That is hard to do.
He never didnt believe in it, and he kept the faith.
You could not ask for a better performance from a key executive and a champion of his project.
Everybody did their jobs.
There are many things to celebrate, many people to celebrate.
Pam and I will always credit everyone who contributes, including a recently reorganized marketing and distribution team.
There are heroes all through this story, and all of them should get the credit they deserve.
It was a complete win for everyone involved.
Theyre writing this snark and they dont actually understand what goes into every step of the way.
Pam and I are in some tower, rubber-stamping green lights.
Every studio does a version of advocacy, from marketing to distribution.
Signing up with numbers, models being looked at.
None of it is a closed process.
I know it is.
ABDY: And the creative process.
When we got here, one of the first things we did was look at what is here.
What could we identify quickly, IP that could be big movies?
Two of them wereBeetlejuice BeetlejuiceandMinecraft.
He talked to us aboutMinecraft, we dove into it, we read it.
We got excited by it and recognized what Jesse Ehrman had been trying to do for years alongside Legendary.
And then we all made the film.
I just want to say like Mike is saying, were not sitting in some tower, rubber-stamping stuff.
Mike and I, were producers.
We all creatively work together.
We show up at every test screening.
We read every script.
Were in the cutting room.
We do everything collaboratively with our filmmakers and with our producers.
Filmmaking is not a singular achievement by one person.
You cant blame Mike and I forJoker 2, and then not give us credit forMinecraftat the same time.
Because the same thinking that went into green lightingMickey 17also went into green lightingBarbieandWonka.
And the same thinking that went into green lightingBeetlejuiceandMinecraftwent into green lightingJoker 2.
Everyone is going to have hits and misses.
Not everyone has hits.
Are you in the black?
Are you in the red?
Were more long-term thinkers that way.
DEADLINE:It looks like Mikes old haunt, New Line, is ripe to have a moment.
I think Richard is a once-in-a-generation piece of executive talent, who has steered that label over decades.
He doubled my tenure: I was there 16 years, and Rich is coming up on year 30.
And its an incredibly important part of our label strategy, our diversified slate strategy.
We were so proud to see Richardunveil his slate at CinemaCon.
Weve seen all the movies, theyre spectacular.
ABDY: Yeah, Richards great.
He leans into genre and they know it better than anybody.
They know how to serve their audience.
I was so excited at CinemaCon for Richard to get on stage and really show what hes doing.
DEADLINE:How aboutSuperman?
DEADLINE:TheCinemaCon trailergenerated a lot of back and forth.
And whens the nextBatmanwith Matt Reeves and Robert Pattinson?
DE LUCA:I loveSuperman.
I think James Gunn has crushed it.
Its got tons of his trademark heart and humor and the action is jaw dropping.
Its theSupermanI grew up with, so I get choked up when I watch it.
I think its so epic and visually arresting and emotional.
The performances are great.
It is a five-star movie to me, and I cant wait for the world to see it.
Yeah, were really excited aboutSuperman, James crushed it.
DEADLINE:A closer cousin to the Richard Donner-directed originals with Christopher Reeve?
It has a little bit of what I loved aboutGuardians of the Galaxy, but its true-blueSuperman.
The comic book sources that he uses for inspiration,All-Star Supermanand the like are in there, too.
It is really a love letter to what has made Superman endure for almost a hundred years.
He managed to get it all in there.
ABDY: Were not in the weeds on theBatmanstuff.
Its really James and Peter Safran who run DC.
DEADLINE:Youve empowered an animation division.
Family film is always a staple of a successful studio.
DE LUCA: Well, it was a no-brainer.
For whatever reason, it had kind of had fallen to fits and starts over the last decade.
They would announce something, it would work for a little bit and then fall by the wayside.
We doubled down on making that commitment and starting things.
We were willing to make that commitment with Bill as the right guy.
It has tested through the roof for us, even in its roughest form.
And we wanted to continue that and to see that grow here.
And we think we have that with Bill.
ABDY: Bills terrific.
The goal for us is to get two animated films a year.
But thats the biggest challenge of animation.
One of the favorite parts of our day comes when were working on those films.
It has to test the thickness of the bark you both have on your hides.
If you love movies, its a dream job.
So, were really enjoying it.
We dont really dwell on things that are outside our control.
I mean, what theatrical audiences want, how to choose which projects have theater-worthy criteria.
Its a full-time job.
It keeps us busy.
So we just attempt to focus on the task at hand and just attempt to ignore this stuff.
Its really out of our control.
ABDY: Its about the work.
This is a dream job.
To have two franchises emerge from our leadership team withBeetlejuice BeetlejuiceandMinecraft, I feel like were ahead of schedule.
Now were trying to step on the gas, to double, to quadruple that kind of success.
DEADLINE:I mentioned getting a new version ofThe Bodyguardunderway.
Are you already developing sequels for bothMinecraftandBeetlejuice Beetlejuice?
DE LUCA: Imminently.
The ink might not be dry on the deals yet, but imminently.
ABDY: Adding to things were excited about, Andy Serkis doing theGollumfilm, Drew Goddard writing a newMatrix.
Were super excited about Amblin developing with Chris Columbus new entries in theGremlinsandGooniesfranchises.
DEADLINE:Last one.
How quickly will you bring in replacements?
DE LUCA: We think we have everything we need to pull off a success likeMinecraft,globally.
I think we havent missed a step.
Were so proud of the performance of the new configuration and the people we promoted.
They executedMinecraftflawlessly and were really excited about the future with the team we have.
