Warner Bros. had one of the best years of the major Hollywood studios, releasing a record-breaking string of profitable movies that kept the theatrical box office afloat throughout the early and middle parts of the year. WB’s 2025 was led by an encouraging blend of movies spawned out of established franchises and original new titles. Shepherding of the studio’s film slate was led by the film division’s Co-CEOs Mike De Luca and Pam Abdy. Their success is even more remarkable given of how precarious their jobs seemed at the beginning of the year.
2025 did not start off so well for De Luca and Abdy, with films MICKEY 17, ALTO NIGHTS and COMPANION all bombing and the fallout of a disappointing 2024 release for JOKER 2: FOLIE A DEUX still being felt. Before CinemaCon in late March, there was widespread speculation that the duo was on the verge of being replaced. Warner Bros. CEO David Zaslav fueled that fire when he refused to give them a public vote of confidence going into conference.
However, the narrative began to turn with the release of A MINECRAFT MOVIE, which became the highest-grossing film of the year in the domestic market, and began a run of seven WB movies to gross at least $40M in their opening weekends. These included original films like SINNERS and WEAPONS, franchises films like SUPERMAN and THE CONJURING: LAST RITES, and new IP like F1: THE MOVIE. It culminated with the September release of ONE BATTLE AFTER ANOTHER, which is seen as a leading candidate for Best Picture at the Oscars. This successful run led to the duo receiving a contract extension, which was a truly remarkable turnaround. Whether they can replicate this success in 2026 remains to be seen, with key titles ahead such as WUTHERING HEIGHTS, THE BRIDE!, SUPERGIRL, and DIGGER.
