I wrote back in May about my worries with incoming Warner Bros. CEO David Zaslav.
The gist of my dread came in the way he treated Clint Eastwood, who has been making movies with Warners for over 50 years now. It’s been one of the most trust-worthy and lasting director/studio friendships in the industry.
Zaslav didn’t seem to give a damn about the partnership. A leaked conference call had Zaslav acting like this hotshot who would not flinch if he had 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.”
Now, after chatting with a few in-the-know individuals about the “Batgirl” debacle, I’m hearing Eastwood isn’t going back to the Warner Bros, which, as you can surmise, I am not surprised about at all.
The story goes that Eastwood recently pitched a new movie to the studio and it didn’t get greenlit. Yes, they rejected Clint Eastwood. Maybe the movie pitched wasn’t good, I don’t know, but it’s becoming clearer by the day that Warners are going in a totally different direction under Zaslav.
Eastwood is in his twilight years, he still wants to make movies and, know what? He’s been making some very good ones these last few years, especially “The Mule” and “Richard Jewell.”