Walter Hamada has been with Warner Bros for 15 years, and spent his time since 2018 in charge of DC. And, despite having re-upped in January 2021, it’s now been revealed that Walter Hamada is resigning as president of DC Films.
This was revealed via Deadline, which noted Hamada “is waiting for the senior Warner Bros Discovery brass to finalize his exit payout.” It’s interesting timing, considering the next DCEU film is about to hit theaters. The new movie, titled Black Adam, actually features Walter Hamada as an executive producer. Even still, it looks like he’s had his mind set on leaving for some time. They noted that “he has packed up his office and hasn’t been part of recent creative meetings.”
Of course, this abrupt news might not be surprising for some. It’s been further noted that “Hamada will be the fifth Warner Bros motion picture studio executive to leave since David Zaslav took the reins of the newly merged Warner Bros Discovery.” The list of other executives that have similarly left Warner Bros includes “Warner Bros. Motion Picture Group chairman Toby Emmerich, President of Production and Development Courtenay Valenti, Motion Picture Group COO Carolyn Blackwood, and Animation Group EVP Allison Abbate.”
Interestingly, however, it appears that “Hamada knew his days were numbered and that this would be the outcome even before he ever met Zaslav.” Indeed, there were many reports that David Zaslav wanted someone akin to the MCU’s Kevin Feige to handle the DCEU franchise. As such, Hamada’s departure is merely the first step in this next phase for the company. It remains to be seen how Warner Bros Discovery will continue to repurpose itself for the future and how well those changes fare. But, all things considered, Black Adam will be our first example for what’s in store.
As for Walter Hamada, he’s had a fantastic career as a producer even before his work with DC. So, with that in mind, we’ll likely continue seeing his name attached to some major blockbusters going forward. Stay tuned to ScreenGeek for additional updates as we have them.