On Monday, June 24th, WarnerMedia CEO John Stankey announced the appointment of Ann Sarnoff as the new Chair and CEO of Warner Bros. Sarnoff, who is currently President of BBC Studios Americas brings more than thirty years of business and media experience to the role of overseeing worldwide operations at Warner Bros. including the production, marketing and distribution of film, television and interactive entertainment.
"I am delighted Ann is joining the WarnerMedia team and excited to work side by side with such a talented and accomplished individual. She brings a consistent and proven track record of innovation, creativity and business results to lead an incredibly successful studio to its next chapter of growth," said Stankey. "Ann has shown the ability to innovate and grow revenues and has embraced the evolution taking place in our industry. I am confident she will be a great cultural fit for WarnerMedia and that our employees will embrace her leadership, enthusiasm and passion for our business."
Sarnoff comes to Warner Bros. with an established track record spanning an array of prominent media and entertainment businesses from Viacom (Nickelodeon, VH1 and CMT) to the WNBA to Dow Jones to the BBC. Sarnoff will be based in Los Angeles and will officially join the company later this summer. She currently resides in New York City.
"It is a privilege to join a studio with such a storied history. Warner Bros. has been an industry leader for decades and is known for creating many of the most iconic film, television and gaming properties," said Sarnoff. "I accept this position excited by the opportunity to work with the most accomplished executives and teams in media, and confident about carrying this incredible heritage forward with them."
During a leadership transition, Warner Bros. was managed by an interim team of leaders made up of Toby Emmerich (Chairman, Warner Bros. Pictures Group), Peter Roth (President and Chief Content Officer, Warner Bros. Television Group), and Kim Williams (EVP & CFO, Warner Bros.). Warner Bros. is a brand under the umbrella of AT&T along with HBO, TNT, TBS, CNN, DC Entertainment, New Line, Cartoon Network, and truTV. AT&T acquired Time Warner in June 2018.