Warner Discovery boss is again among highest-paid CEOs in America

Even earlier Warner Bros. Discovery's merchantability to Paramount Skydance Corp. closes, David Zaslav has already made a large payday.

His enforcement compensation bundle — which includes banal options, salary, bonuses and different perks — was valued astatine $165 cardinal past year, placing him arsenic the eighth-highest-paid CEO for a ample U.S. publically traded company, according to probe steadfast Equilar.

Tech companies dominated the database led by Tesla Chief Executive Elon Musk with a wage bundle worthy astir $132.3 billion. RJ Scaringe, CEO of Rivian, the Irvine-based EV motortruck company, came successful 5th with $402.6 million.

Zaslav has antecedently ranked among America's highest-paid CEOs and that was existent past year, erstwhile his full wage was much than 3 times what helium earned astatine the institution successful 2024, Equilar said. He was the lone Hollywood enforcement connected the database of the 10 highest-paid CEOs successful 2025.

"If helium were an animal, he'd beryllium a Cheshire feline with this large grin receptor to ear," said Lloyd Greif, main enforcement of the Los Angeles concern slope Greif & Co. "It's unprecedented. It's a immense payday."

As businesses successful Hollywood and different sectors look much consolidation and competition, executives are getting richly compensated much for their relation successful starring companies done challenging times.

"That has to bash with the situation we're in, and due to the fact that of each the fears of recessions, each the fears of inflation, it's gotten a batch harder to navigate done this system and truthful companies are paying much for that enactment astatine the top," said Courtney Yu, Equilar's manager of research.

But shareholders person pushed backmost against hefty wage packages, which travel during a play of upheaval successful Hollywood that has been buffeted by occupation losses from media consolidation and outsourcing. One proxy firm, Institutional Shareholder Services, adjacent labeled Zaslav's bundle a "golden parachute proposal."

Median compensation among main executives astatine large amusement companies was $35.1 cardinal successful 2025, up 3.8% from a twelvemonth ago, according to Equilar.

The Times and Equilar examined 9 publically traded companies — Walt Disney Co., Warner Bros. Discovery, Paramount Skydance, Netflix, AMC Global Media Inc., Fox Corp., Comcast, Roku and Lionsgate.

Most companies declined to remark connected the wage levels and referred The Times to their nationalist filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other CEOs whose wage roseate past twelvemonth included Fox Corp. CEO Lachlan Murdoch, whose full compensation roseate 39% to $32.98 million; and erstwhile Walt Disney Co. CEO Bob Iger, who received a bundle valued astatine $45.8 million, up 12%.