Warner Bros Communications Chief Dee Dee Myers to Step Down
No successor has been named
Beatrice Verhoeven | February 24, 2020 @ 10:16 AM
Last Updated: February 24, 2020 @ 10:52 AM
Dee Dee Myers is stepping down as EVP of worldwide corporate communications and public affairs at Warner Bros., an individual with knowledge of the situation told TheWrap.
No successor has been named. Myers was at the studio for five years, having joined Warner Bros. in 2014.
Before her time at Warner Bros., Myers served as managing director of communications consulting firm Glover Park Group, and she was also previously a political analyst and commentator. In addition, she wrote a book titled “Why Women Should Rule the World.”
Myers is also a former White House Press Secretary, having worked for President Bill Clinton during his first term. When Myers joined Warner Bros., she replaced Sue Fleishman, who left the company after serving in the position of EVP of corporate communications and public affairs for nine years.
Variety first reported the news.
See Myers’ memo to staff below.
Dear Colleagues,
After more than five fantastic years at Warner Bros., the time has come for me to move on. I do so with tremendous gratitude for my time here, for the work that we’ve done together and for the opportunity to have learned so much from all of you.
Warner Bros. is an amazing company with nearly a century of success, rooted in an unyielding commitment to great storytelling. And that commitment has produced some of the world’s most iconic films, television shows and games –and an incomparable company culture. For generations, this studio has been a special place to work, and I feel honored to have been a small part of it for the past half-decade.
For me, it starts with the incredible Worldwide Corporate Communications and Public Affairs team. Our charge has been not only to protect Warner Bros.’ singular legacy– but to ensure that the company’s commitments and actions are worthy of that history going forward. Thanks to the hard work and dedication of the entire group — and so many talented colleagues across the company — we accomplished so much.
Nowhere is that more evident than on the iconic water tower, where our new, more modern shield connects Warner Bros.’ storied history to its vibrant future. It’s the centerpiece of our effort to refresh the brand, articulate the company’s mission and values for the first time, and sum up our shared purpose in a single line: We believe in the power of story.
We also doubled down on our diversity and inclusion efforts. We started a dialogue with our employees aimed at building a worldwide culture of true belonging, helped launch WarnerMedia’s Production Diversity Policy and led the process of creating and releasing the industry’s first annual Diversity & Inclusion Report. We rebuilt our Corporate Social Responsibility and philanthropy programs — focused on creating more opportunities in our industry for underrepresented groups and on doing our work sustainably — and we launched our new CSR platform: WB Good. We helped roll out the Second Century real estate project. We worked with state and local policy makers to support production around the world. And we helped manage countless events to connect all our employees to the incredible work Warner Bros does.
Like all good comms groups, we also managed the blocking and tackling of media relations and crisis communications. We faced our share of long days, late nights and heart-stopping headlines. But together, we kept working to tell the Warner Bros. story, authentically and truthfully.
And finally, we had the honor of welcoming our new CEO, Ann Sarnoff. We worked with all of you to help her introduce herself to the company and to the industry, showcasing her talents, accomplishments and vision for Warner Bros.’ future. I don’t have to tell any of you: in her first months, she has shone, and I’m excited to see where she and all of you take the company going forward.
As Warner Bros. and WarnerMedia move into this new era, I will leave on April 1 with only the fondest memories – and a trunk full of swag. Fully expect to see me sporting hats, t-shirts, backpacks, hoodies, raincoats, socks and reusable water bottles – and know that I will be rooting for all of you.
As one of my heroes, Bruce Springsteen, wrote, “No one you have been, and no place you have ever gone, leaves you. The new parts of you simply jump in the car and go along for the rest of the ride.” From the bottom of my heart, thanks for letting me share this part of my ride with you. I will carry all that I have seen and all that I have learned always.
All my best,
Dee Dee
Summer 2017 Movie Winners and Losers, From 'Spider-Man: Homecoming' to 'The House' (Photos)
Who killed it this summer, and who should hope to have a better fall? Check out TheWrap's list of this summer's movie winners and losers.
WINNER: "Wonder Woman" Apart from making more than $400 million at the domestic box office, the movie was critically lauded and united girls, boys, men and women all over the world -- doing did things no superhero movie has done before it.
WB
LOSER: "Rough Night" Unfortunately, Sony's "Rough Night" has only banked $22 million so far although it was produced for $20 million. Plus, it received mixed reviews from critics -- and one month later, a similar comedy (in that it starred several recognizable actresses in a tale of old friends reuniting with a wild night that gets way out of hand) performed better among critics and the box office.
WB
WINNER: Patty Jenkins Jenkins directed the second biggest movie of the year -- "Wonder Woman" -- and has been an outspoken critic about female representation in Hollywood. Plus, she is in the process of negotiating a record-breaking deal to helm its sequel.
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LOSER: "The Mummy" Tom Cruise's reboot of the Brendan Fraser films cost a reported $125 million to produce but has only grossed $80 million domestically. Thankfully, it played well overseas, but it still received a Rotten Tomatoes score of 16 percent.
Universal
WINNER: Christopher Nolan Christopher Nolan resurfaced this summer with "Dunkirk," which has become a strong Oscar contender and was very well-reviewed by critics. It currently has a 93 percent "fresh" score on Rotten Tomatoes.
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LOSER: "The House" You'd think a movie starring Amy Poehler and Will Ferrell would be a hit, but no. For Ferrell, it’s the worst opening weekend for any of his movies with a screen count of over 3,000 locations, even lower than the $15 million made in 2008 by “Semi-Pro” and the $13.8 million made by “Zoolander No. 2” last year.
WB Domestic Distribution President Jeff Goldstein told TheWrap, "We’re so disappointed. We had much higher hopes."
WINNER: "Dunkirk" As previously mentioned, "Dunkirk" received stellar reviews and raked in a solid amount of money both domestically and overseas. It was lauded as a "masterpiece."
WB
LOSER: Any Parent Sent to Watch "Emoji Movie" "The Emoji Movie" became summer's worst reviewed movie, even below "Transformers" and "The Nut Job 2." We just feel bad for the parents that were forced to take their kids to the theater to see it. And there were a lot ...
Sony
WINNER: Ansel Elgort "Baby Driver" pretty much defied all expectations and had solid reviews but also made a decent amount of money. Many praised Ansel Elgort in his career-turning performance, and people loved the soundtrack of the movie itself.
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LOSER: Sequels "Transformers: The Last Knight," "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales" and "Alien: Covenant" all underperformed at the domestic box office. Audiences at home seem to be sick and tired of sequels, although those particular 3 raked in huge overseas.
Fox
WINNER: Disney Disney's summer roster included "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2," "Pirates of the Caribbean 5" and "Cars 3," all big blockbusters that raked in the big bucks -- although "Pirates" came in big overseas.
LOSER: Paramount Paramount received a blow this summer: "Baywatch" and "Transformers: The Last Knight" bombed domestically. Of course, international box office came to the rescue, but both movies were widely panned by critics.
Paramount
WINNER: "Annabelle: Creation" The horror genre is one of the most sustainable genres in the industry as it keeps proving that low risk-high reward pays off. "Creation" over-performed when it opened and also received pretty decent reviews.
New Line
LOSER: "Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets" Luc Besson's latest sci-fi fantasy didn't do well domestically or internationally. It has only grossed around $172 million worldwide to date although it was produced for around $177.2 million. Poor casting, an unfamiliar story and the fact that "Guardians of the Galaxy" opened right before it could've been reasons it failed to launch.
STX
WINNER: Zac Efron's Abs for "Baywatch "Baywatch" was filled with hot bots, but all eyes seemed to wander towards Zac Efron's abs. The actor underwent a heavy workout regime and diet to look like that -- and we appreciate it.
Paramount
LOSER: "Transformers" As previously mentioned, "The Last Knight" failed to launch at the box office. Not only did it rake in significantly less than its predecessors, but it was also widely panned by critics. However, Paramount doesn't seem to care about audiences growing tired of the franchise -- a spin-off, "Bumblebee," is already in the works.
Paramount
WINNER: Warner Bros. Even though "The House" bombed, Warner Bros. has had huge successes this summer, of course including "Wonder Woman" and "Dunkirk."
LOSER: "The Dark Tower" The movie adaptation of one of Stephen King's most famous works unfortunately failed to resonate with audiences. It somewhat underperformed and critics didn't love the film starring Matthew McConaughey and Idris Elba.
Sony
WINNER: Tiffany Haddish Newcomer Tiffany Haddish received a lot of praise for what critics called a "breakout" performance in "Girls Trip."
LOSER: Memorial Day Weekend This year's Memorial Day Weekend was the worst since the turn of the century in terms of box office. According to numbers from comScore and Box Office Mojo, the 2017 Memorial Day weekend totals only amounted to $180.6 million, down 12 percent from the $205.4 million made last year and 43 percent from the record-setting $314 million made in 2013.
Disney
WINNER: "Girls Trip" "Girls Trip" succeeded where other adult comedies failed. Directed by Malcolm D. Lee, the film has posted the biggest opening in the genre so far this year with a final tally of $31.2 million.
LOSER: "Emoji Movie" Yes, "The Emoji Movie" scored $25 million its opening weekend, but it was widely panned by critics and became the worst reviewed movie of the summer.
Sony
WINNER: Illumination Illumination killed it this summer with "Despicable Me 3," which propelled the franchise into becoming the highest grossing animation franchise ever.
Illumination
LOSER: Sony Pictures The studio got hit with a double whammy this summer: "Emoji Movie" and "Dark Tower" flopped, and the studio lost its $200 million slate financing deal with Texas private equity firm Lone Star. Sony's weak run at the box office was the main reason Lone Star bailed on the deal, but chief Tom Rothman didn't help matters when he plopped his feet on the boss' desk during a disastrous meeting.
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WINNER: "Spider-Man: Homecoming" Jon Watts' take on the webbed superhero received a 92 percent Rotten Tomatoes score, has grossed over $737 million worldwide and has already spawned sequel. We'd say it's definitely a winner.
Sony
LOSER: August Let's be honest -- August has been kind of a dud. In the past two weeks, no big releases were unveiled, and although mid-August through early September is known to be sleepy, this year has been exceptionally slow. According to The Guardian, this August is down 35 percent from last year.
Lionsgate
WINNER: DC Execs After the gloominess of “Batman v Superman” and “Suicide Squad,” a team of DC executives and creatives looked for a new guiding philosophy. Three executives — Kevin Tsujihara, chairman of Warner Bros. Entertainment, Greg Silverman, the former president of Creative Development and Worldwide Production and Diane Nelson, president of DC Entertainment and Warner Bros. Consumer Products — decided to give oversight of the DC film projects to the dynamic duo of Geoff Johns and Jon Berg. The duo helped "Wonder Woman" become this summer's smash hit and course corrected DC movies.
Warner Bros.
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Warner Bros. had a great few months — but other studios, filmmakers and stars weren’t so lucky
Who killed it this summer, and who should hope to have a better fall? Check out TheWrap's list of this summer's movie winners and losers.