Steven Spielberg, Martin Scorsese, and Paul Thomas Anderson threw a little directorial star power in support of their favorite TV network today, with IndieWire reporting that the big-name trio held an “emergency call” with Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav over the fate of classic movies channel TCM. The network, which is one of the numerous channels lucky enough to toil under Zaslav’s cost-cutting eye, was hit with layoffs this week, including the termination of Genevieve McGillicuddy, whose duties included directing the annual TCM Film Festival—an event that Spielberg is an especially vocal participant in.
All three directors have been extremely effusive about TCM in the past, with Scorsese noting that it’s pretty much always on in the background when he’s editing his films. Spielberg, meanwhile, has lent tons of time and energy to the channel, appearing in numerous documentary shorts and stumping for it—really, the last place on regular TV where older movies are still in regular rotation—at every opportunity. And Anderson has been similarly enthusiastic as both a proponent, and, now, a defender, once referring to the channel as “holy ground.”
Warner Bros. and Zaslav laid off large chunks of the leadership at TCM yesterday, including general manager Pola Changnon, who’s been with TCM for 25 years; all told, the company wiped a decent chunk of the people responsible for curating TCM’s film library from the books pretty much all at once. Which means that Zaslav (who’s gone on the record in the past as a regular TCM viewer himself) finds himself in the uncomfortable position of slashing budgets at a channel beloved by America’s most famous directors, at the same time that he’s trying to court those directors back into the fold—after Warner Bros. massively pissed numerous cineastes off by its unilateral lockdown-era decision to push most of its cinematic output to streaming.
Update, 6/21/23 at 11:08 p.m.: Spielberg, Scorsese, and Anderson have now, per THR, issued a joint statement about their call with Zaslav, stating that they’re “heartened” and “encouraged” by the conversation. You can read the full text of the statement below.
Turner Classic Movies has always been more than just a channel. It is truly a precious resource of cinema, open 24 hours a day seven days a week. And while it has never been a financial juggernaut, it has always been a profitable endeavor since its inception.
Earlier this week, David Zaslav, the CEO of Warner Bros. Discovery, got in touch to talk about the restructuring of TCM. We understand the pressures and realities of a corporation as large as WBD, of which TCM is one moving part.
We have each spent time talking to David, separately and together, and it’s clear that TCM and classic cinema are very important to him. Our primary aim is to ensure that TCM’s programming is untouched and protected.
We are heartened and encouraged by the conversations we’ve had thus far, and we are committed to working together to ensure the continuation of this cultural touchstone that we all treasure.