Clint Eastwood has been making movies with Warner Bros. for over 50 years now. It’s been one of the most trust-worthy and lasting director/studio friendships in the industry.
Sadly, I don’t think newly promoted Warner CEO David Zaslav gives a damn. A recent conference call Zaslav had with the movie studio’s executives leaked and it looks like this hotshot would not flinch if he wanted to let go of Eastwood’s partnership with the studio.
The major point of contention was Eastwood’s box-office flop “Cry Macho.” After executives told Zaslav that they had doubted the movie would turn a profit, Zaslav asked “then why did you make it if you had reservations?” When they replied that Eastwood had given the studio many hits and never delivered a movie late or over budget, he answered: “We don’t owe anyone any favors.”
Eastwood is turning 92 next week. He has nothing more to prove, but he still wants to make the small-budgeted movies he seems to be churning out on a yearly basis. Zaslav taking over is very bad news for not just Eastwood, but quality cinema as a whole. His attitude seems repugnant. That's not a way to talk about a man who brought your studio a ton of prestige over the last five decades with critically-acclaimed and award-winning movies.
The short version: "Woman Unknown" was a compromise. The jury deadlocked over "Possible Love" and "NAZA," not able to com to terms, fell back on their #3, May el-Toukhy's film.