In Aboutface, Jason Kilar To Remain At WarnerMedia Through Spin-Off, Combination With Discovery

In something of an aboutface, WarnerMedia CEO Jason Kilar — who was said to be negotiating his exit amid the company’s spinoff into a newly-combined media giant with Discovery — announced today that he will remain at the company until that transaction is complete.

The Wall Street Journal reports that the storied digital exec said in a company-wide address that he plans to reassess his options in the middle of next year, which is when the spin-off and combination are slated to close.

“My plan and my focus is to remain here in my CEO role at WarnerMedia,” Kilar said in a town hall meeting to fete the first anniversary of HBO Max, per the Journal. “I am not thinking right now about post-merger. There will be a time to consider that topic in 2022. I believe we have unfinished business, and the work of the next year can and should be extremely fulfilling as the world continues to see what we are capable of doing.”

Previous reports alleged that Kilar was not kept in the loop about the $43 billion mega-deal, which will combine two WarnerMedia and Discovery into a media goliath that will presumably be able to compete on the streaming front with the likes of Netflix and Disney+.

Kilar’s tenure at WarnerMedia has seen big and controversial bets, including the decision to release all Warner Bros. movies on HBO Max at the same time that they hit theaters.