David Zaslav, the CEO of Warner Bros. Discovery, is selling stock worth over $114 million, according to an SEC filing. This comes as the company's sale to Paramount is pending, and the cash is starting to flow. Zaslav filed to sell just over 4 million shares, acquired as part of his compensation between January 2023 and February 2026. This is not an isolated incident, as several other top executives at Warner Bros. Discovery have also sold shares worth seven figures this week, including CFO Gunnar Wiedenfels, Chief Revenue & Strategy Officer Bruce Campbell, and Chief Legal Officer Priya Aiyar. The trading window opened for executives involved in any deal negotiations, and Warner Bros. Discovery recently scuppered a deal with Netflix and agreed to sell itself to Paramount after a week of talks and months of unsolicited offers. Paramount's latest $31 per share offer was deemed a superior proposal, and Netflix declined to match it, backing away with a $2.8 billion termination fee. The merger is expected to close in the third quarter of this year. Zaslav, who has often been the highest-paid media CEO, will see a significant windfall when Warner Bros. Discovery is sold. A filing in December detailed potential transaction-related compensation, valuing his unvested equity awards at $537 million based on Paramount's previous $30 per share offer. This would be higher at $31 per share. He will also receive cash severance, a bonus, salary, and benefits as part of his employment agreement with Warner Bros. Discovery if there's a change in control at the company. Warner Bros. Discovery will address Zaslav's compensation in its upcoming proxy statement.
