Cindy Holland, the chair of Paramount‘s direct-to-consumer division overseeing the company’s streaming plans, announced in a memo to staff that she’s exiting the company, according to reports in Variety and Deadline. The move most likely paves the way for Casey Bloys, who leads HBO and HBO Max at Warner Bros. Discovery, to lead streaming, something Holland hinted at in her exit memo. Today, September 29, is her last day at Paramount.
Holland’s exit provides some clarity for Paramount’s streaming vision. While Holland’s memo didn’t mention Bloys by name, it hints that “David is optimizing for HBO stability as we move into this next chapter, and I fully support that.” Bloys became president of HBO programming in 2016 and his role has only expanded since then to encompass HBO Max and other aspects of Warner Bros. Discovery.
Holland joined Paramount in January 2025 and described in her memo that she was tasked with reviving Pluto TV as well as integrating Paramount+ and advising on the WBD merger, and she helped grow Paramount+ to 79.6 million subscribers. She also was a pivotal force in the early days of Netflix’s expansion into original streaming programming with shows like “House of Cards” and “Stranger Things,” and she ultimately spent 18 years at Netflix.
While Bloys coming aboard isn’t official, nor has the merger itself closed just yet, it could be solidified in a matter of days. And what happens to HBO and HBO Max, how it’s integrated into Paramount+ or whether it stands alone, are big questions that remain. Bloys, though, has as good a track record as anyone in town. Consider HBO’s continued dominance at the Emmys and how the brand has sustained over the years even as Paramount’s own premium cable brand Showtime has dwindled, ultimately becoming integrated into Paramount+.
Unanswered still is what will be the fate of Warner Bros. Pictures executives Mike DeLuca and Pam Abdy and what their role would be in a combined WarnerMount. Paramount still needs to deliver on an aggressive slate of 30 movies per year across the two studios, so there’s plenty of opportunity to go around.
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