Overview

• Warner Bros. Discovery will separate into WBD Streaming & Studios under CEO David Zaslav and WBD Global Networks led by CFO Gunnar Wiedenfels, with the split expected by mid-2026.
• A new employment contract signed June 12 cuts Zaslav’s target annual cash bonus to $6 million from $22 million and shifts his pay mix toward long-term incentives.
• Zaslav received a one-time inducement award of 20,898,776 stock options, 60 percent performance-vesting and 40 percent time-based, with vesting tied to specific stock price targets.
• His annual base salary remains at $3 million and his initial equity grant target is set at $15.5 million, reducing to $7.5 million in subsequent years under the Streaming & Studios plan.
• Shareholder dissent over last year’s $51.9 million pay package fueled the board’s decision to realign executive compensation with performance goals.