Warner Bros. Doubles Down On Inclusion Despite $200 Million Loss With 'Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League'
Warner Bros. Discovery announced it is “committed to telling inclusive and diverse stories across our film and television programming around the world.”
Chief Global Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Officer Asif Sadiq and Chief People & Culture Officer Jennifer Remling sent a memo to staff that was obtained by Deadline back at the end of February where they unequivocally declared the company’s support to diversity, inclusion, and equity initiatives.
In the memo the duo declared, “For more than a century, our company has had a proud history of creating stories that inspire, educate, and entertain audiences of all backgrounds, all over the world. As storytellers, to truly and deeply connect with those global audiences, it is imperative that we understand and reflect the incredible depth of their lives and experiences — at every level of our company, in front of and behind the camera, on and off the screen.”
“Our success absolutely depends on having a team that’s truly diverse, reflects all perspectives, and has a culture where our employees feel valued and respected. These have always been our values and that won’t ever change,” they added.
Next, the duo declared the company’s allegiance to woke ideology, “We continue to be strongly committed to telling inclusive and diverse stories across our film and television programming around the world.”
Of note, the company took a $200 million impairment charge after the failure of Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League a little over a year ago.
Nevertheless, they continued that they will be “growing an inclusive team” and they do this by “best in-class recruiting and training programs, which provide essential skills training, education, and job opportunities to build career pathways into the entertainment industry for people of all backgrounds.”
However, Sadiq is on record advocating for the removal of qualified employees simply because they oppose DEI. NewsBusters reported that Sadiq outlined his tactics as a panelist for the Aspen Institute webinar titled The Future of DEI in Corporate America back in February 2024. His comments came following Design Observer Editor-in-Chief Ellen McGirt sharing, “We came up with this strategy, and I love it. It is: Find your people and ignore the person you cannot persuade. You know exactly who they are, and if you can’t bring yourself to do it because of your professional orientation, give it 30 days. Ignore them for 30 days. Don’t take the bait. Don’t send them the clip. Don’t send them the newsletter. Don’t send them the deck. Just focus on the people who are willing to do the work. The new arrivals to the work. The new leaders who are preparing, as we’ve talked about to be better allies, to be more vulnerable, to communicate better; work preparing them. … But absolutely do not get caught into that spin cycle of trying to persuade the most powerful person that you know who is not interested to be interested because they’re not coming. 30 days you can do it.”
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Sadiq reacted to McGirt saying, “And if I can just add on to that point because I think it’s such an important point. Even beyond leaders, there’s always those few people who will never change. You will never convince them. You can try up until the end of eternity and it will still not happen. We waste so much energy doing that sometimes as individuals whether you’re in a leadership position or in a team and so on.”
He continued, “Focus on the ones who want to change because that way you start changing culture. And if you change culture often those people who don’t come around will start saying this place isn’t the way it used to be and they’ll leave themselves, which is great!”
NewsBusters also reported that Sadiq said, “I think this is a moment where people have to show up as actively being anti-racist. And that requires going a bit further than saying, ‘That’s not me, so I’m just going to sit back.’ That requires you using your power, privilege and the positions you hold to try to create equity for marginalized groups, for historically marginalized groups and groups who haven’t had access, but that requires really stepping up.”
“And it’s showing up as well, showing up internally, showing up to even to the structures that DEI has put in place, whether its business resource groups, employee resource groups, events, showing up during this period of time for a leader is critical, because it shows that you care and you are willing to learn,” he added.
Despite this Sadiq and Remling’s email claims they will be “supporting all employees” and “will ensure our Business Resource Groups which we believe play an important role in fostering community and belonging, continue to thrive as they welcome everyone to celebrate culture and share experiences.”
Next, the email states that the company will be “Leading with Inclusion: Our overarching work in this space will now be referred to as Inclusion, which Asif’s team will continue to oversee. Making this change better aligns our language with our focus throughout our company, in our industry, and across our content. We’re updating the language we use to ensure the intent and impact of our actions are clear; you will see this new approach being updated on wbd.com as well as on our internal channels.”
It does claim it will have a “uniform and consistent application process across our talent programs, including internships, mentoring, and other development programs. All of our programs will be open and welcoming to all applicants, with the goal of cultivating an inclusive home for world-class talent. By investing in world-class talent from wherever it comes, we are not only supporting growth and opportunity in this company but also strengthening the wider industry’s future.”
However, this flies in this face of previous comments made by Sadiq about kicking out employees on purely ideological grounds no matter how talented they are.
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Finally, the duo conclude their email reiterating, “Since our commitment to inclusion is essential to our business and our mission, we are undertaking this evolution thoughtfully. We are working with corporate and creative stakeholders from across the company to develop a refreshed strategy that aligns with both our business priorities and core values. We will share more with you soon as this progresses.”
“Telling stories that shape culture and engage people all over the world takes a commitment to diverse voices, perspectives, and experiences. Fully representing our audiences is critical to our business, our content, and our culture. We are now, and always will be, committed to ensuring our values underpin how we operate as a company,” they concluded.
What do you make of Warner Bros. committing to inclusion?
So much for your fiduciary responsibility to the stock holders. Enjoy your future unemployment after the eventual share holder revolt.
"Chief Global Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Officer Asif Sadiq and Chief People & Culture Officer Jennifer Remling"
I found the problem. It started with HR being a Cancer to fire people because of "feelings". Now we have even more Woke Retărdation positions that waste money and fire the real talent........