Warner Bros. Film Chiefs De Luca and Abdy Reportedly Out, but James Gunn Survives at DC for Now

For months, the future of Michael De Luca and Pam Abdy at Warner Bros. has been one of Hollywood’s most-discussed open questions. The $110 billion merger between Paramount Skydance and Warner Bros. Discovery is expected to close on Oct. 6. Their fates stayed unclear even after Judge Araceli Martínez-Olguín approved Paramount’s settlement with 12 state attorneys general.

The pair took over the Warner Bros. film studio in 2022 and delivered a standout 2025. The studio tied its all-time record with 11 Academy Awards from an industry-leading 30 nominations, including a Best Picture win for ‘One Battle After Another.’ They also oversaw hits like ‘Sinners,’ ‘A Minecraft Movie’ and ‘Weapons,’ and their contracts were renewed almost exactly a year ago.

Now the Warner Bros. film chiefs are reportedly on their way out. According to Puck, which cited two well-placed sources, De Luca and Abdy will not join the merged company. The decision has reportedly been made, though David Ellison still has to deliver the news, with calls expected by Tuesday morning. Variety also reported that multiple sources say the pair won’t be part of Ellison’s management team.

Paramount declined to comment. A person close to the executives told TheWrap that neither had been informed of anything by Paramount leadership. The report landed the same night David Zaslav threw a farewell party in Beverly Hills, with De Luca, Abdy, James Gunn and Peter Safran among the guests.

Paramount co-chairs Dana Goldberg and Josh Greenstein are reportedly set to oversee both film studios, which will release 30 movies a year under the deal. A new executive would be hired from outside or promoted from within to run Warner Bros. under them. De Luca and Abdy will reportedly be paid out through 2030.

The timing is rough for the departing duo. 2026 has been much tougher than 2025, with movies like ‘Supergirl’ and ‘The Bride’ failing to motivate audiences. Their final Warner Bros. release is Tom Cruise’s ‘Digger,’ which was predicted to open to just $12 million to $15 million domestically.

There is also a financial angle. Paramount needs to find $6 billion in savings to make the merger work, and removing two studio chiefs would immediately save tens of millions of dollars a year. Still, the relationships De Luca and Abdy built with talent may be worth many times that to a studio releasing 30 movies annually.

The news also reverses earlier chatter. A previous TheWrap report suggested the studio planned to keep Abdy and De Luca in a merged system alongside Gunn and Safran. That plan now appears to be dead for the film chiefs.

The DC side of the story looks calmer, at least for the moment. Puck reports that Gunn and Safran, who have served as DC Studios co-CEOs since its formation in November 2022, will be invited to stay on, at least initially. That caveat is doing a lot of work.

Gunn’s contract reportedly expires in 2027 following ‘Man of Tomorrow,’ with no new extension in place. One analysis argues the sequel could be the make-or-break moment for the duo. ‘Supergirl’ underperformed, though ‘Lanterns’ has been described as a big success on HBO Max.

Ellison has long signaled a preference for stability. Bloomberg reported last October that he wanted to keep the creative teams of both studios in place. With De Luca and Abdy gone, Gunn’s long-term future reportedly rests with Greenstein and Goldberg.

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