The first visible communications exit after the Skydance-Warner Bros. deal is here. Chelsey Summey, SVP of global communications for Warner Bros.’ motion picture group, has left the studio as the new owner prepares to restructure the film unit’s communications team.
Interim leadership arrives from Paramount
Brooke Robertson, EVP of global communications at Paramount, will run Warner film communications on an interim basis, according to TheWrap. That puts a Paramount executive in charge of messaging just as Warner opens its first release under Skydance: the DC Studios horror film Clayface, due this weekend.
The choice is practical as well as political. Robertson’s interim role suggests the two studios may share comms resources and priorities while the permanent structure is set. For marketers, that is usually a sign of tighter, more centralized campaign messaging.
Why a comms exit matters more than it seems
Communications is often the first function consolidated after a media merger because it controls how cost cuts, creative bets and distribution decisions are framed. The departure is stage one of a three-stage process that typically plays out as leadership changes, then press and events consolidation, then new reporting lines for title campaigns.
Summey joined Warner Bros. in early 2024 under former film chiefs Michael De Luca and Pam Abdy. She oversaw communications during a strong 2025 slate that included Sinners, A Minecraft Movie and Weapons. Before that, she led corporate communications for Amazon MGM’s motion picture group and was SVP of corporate communications at 20th Century Fox, now 20th Century Studios.
For media agencies and entertainment marketers, the practical move is to treat existing Warner film communications contacts as unconfirmed until the new structure is announced. The old map may not hold.
The cost-cutting backdrop
Skydance is expected to cut thousands of positions to find savings after closing its $111 billion purchase of Warner Bros. earlier this month. One planning number matters: an August report from the Los Angeles County Department of Economic Opportunity estimated that as many as 4,500 film and television jobs could be lost over the next three years as a result of the merger.
That figure is a county-level estimate, not a confirmed Warner headcount target. But it is the number stakeholders will use to gauge the merger’s near-term employment impact.
What to watch next
- Access: Which Warner film comms contacts remain through the transition?
- Positioning: How fast does Skydance centralize publicity and marketing narratives?
- Evidence: Does Clayface get a traditional Warner campaign or a more integrated Skydance/Paramount approach?
The comms move is not just an HR item. It is an early indicator of how the combined studio will sell films to press, exhibitors and audiences through the rest of the decade.
Source: TheWrap
