WARNER BROS. STUDIO IS TODAY CELEBRATING ITS 100th ANNIVERSARY WITH THE LAUNCH OF A LARGE NUMBER OF EVENTS, SPECIAL CONTENT, PRODUCTS AND EXPERIENCES THROUGHOUT ITALY

Warner Bros. Discovery (Nasdaq: WBD) is celebrating the 100th anniversary of Warner Bros. Studio today, after a century of iconic stories and characters: to celebrate the anniversary a series of events, special cinema releases, content and products are being officially announced, as well as a lot of exclusive experiences which will take place throughout 2023. The centenary marks a very significant milestone in a story which, over the years has given rise to some of the best-loved and most iconic films and television series in history.

During this year, Warner Bros. Discovery will celebrate and pay homage to this anniversary with a large number of launches and trigger events, including:

THEATRICAL: The Warner Bros. centenary is a unique opportunity to celebrate the studio’s highly successful films. And during 2023 a selection of Warner Bros. Pictures’ best-loved and most iconic movies will be re-released in theatres, an amazing chance to allow all fans of all ages to experience these amazing masterpieces through the magic of the big screen.
After 2001: A Space Odyssey came back to the screen in February, other hit films will return to cinemas over the coming months, including:
–
• The Wizard of Oz – From 3-5 April 2023
• Superman (1978) – From 24-26 April 2023
• The Shawshank Redemption – From 8-10 May 2023
• Casablanca – From 26-28 June 2023
• Interstellar – From 31 July to 2 August 2023
• Dunkirk – From 7-9 August 2023
• Enter the Dragon – From 14-16 August
• The Exorcist – From 18-20 September 2023
• Beetlejuice – From 23-25 October 2023
• Gremlins – From 13-15 November 2023
• The Goonies – From 4-6 December 2023

HOME ENTERTAINMENT: The celebrations will also continue on the digital stores at Apple TV App, Prime Video and Rakuten TV, thanks to the rooms set aside for the great Warner Bros. films that will be on offer for a restricted period.
For the Home Video department, the centenary will be the golden thread to enrich all the products that are released in 2023 with celebratory packaging and stickers. But the celebrations won’t finish there; a huge number of special editions of memorable and iconic films as well as movies that will celebrate important anniversaries over the year will be available and will accompany in cinema re-releases: from Superman to The Exorcist, from Gremlins to Enter the Dragon, all of them for the first time in 4K UHD.
And to make this important milestone even more unforgettable, Warner Bros. has collected its most iconic films in a precious three-volumes box available in 4K UHD and Blu-ray. The volumes will include the studio’s most successful films, divided into eras, and will bring together the greatest films which have transformed cinema and inspired people all over the world.

The first volume, “Classic Hollywood”, will come out on 4 April and will include:
o Citizen Kane
o Casablanca
o Singin’ in the Rain
o Rebel Without a Cause (for the first time in 4K)
o Cool Hand Luke (for the first time in 4K)

Over the coming months “New Hollywood” and “Modern Blockbuster” volumes will also be available, which will include respectively:

o Enter the Dragon (for the first time in 4K)
o Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory
o The Lost Boys
o The Exorcist (for the first time in 4K)
o The Goonies
o Goodfellas
o Unforgiven
o The Shawshank Redemption
o A Star is Born
o Elvis

TELEVISION: Exceptional programming to celebrate the Warner Bros. centenary: WARNER TV will accompany us on a journey going backwards through time. The story starts with the most iconic films of the 1990s and arrives at the very beginnings in the 30s, providing a week full of cinematic masterpieces. It starts on Monday 3 April at 9:25pm with “MIDNIGHT IN THE GARDEN OF GOOD AND EVIL”, the 1997 thriller directed by Clint Eastwood and based on John Berendt’s best seller which tells the story of something that hit the news in the 1980s in Savannah, Georgia. In prime time on Tuesday 4 April, Steven Spielberg’s 1987 historical drama “EMPIRE OF THE SUN” will be shown. Set in Shanghai during the Japanese occupation, the film shows the fascination and horror of war through the eyes of Jim, played by a very young Christian Bale. On Wednesday 5 April at 9:25pm it will be the turn of “A STAR IS BORN”, the second remake of the great 1937 classic, which was directed in 1976 by Frank Pierson and which stars Kris Kristofferson and Barbra Streisand, which won an Oscar and as many as five Golden Globes. Thursday 6 April at 9:25pm is the time for the 1968 masterpiece directed by Stanley Kubrick, “2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY”. While Friday 7 April at 9:25pm will see the broadcast of “GIANT” the western taken from Edna Ferber’s legendary novel, and directed by George Stevens in 1956. The film – which has an all-star cast including Elizabeth Taylor, Rock Hudson, James Dean, Carroll Baker, Jane Withers and Chill Wills – won nine nominations and one Oscar, for best director. On Saturday 8 April at 9:25pm we will be thrown into the Second World War with “CASABLANCA”, a 1942 masterpiece directed by Michael Curtiz which won three Oscars. It is a film in which reality and fiction are as close as could be, and is based on the stage play Everybody Comes to Rick’s by Murray Burnett and Joan Alison. We will end this journey through time on Sunday 9 April at 9:25pm by being transported into the wonderful world of the “WIZARD OF OZ”, Victor Fleming’s 1939 masterpiece, with Judy Garland doing an extraordinary job as the courageous Dorothy.

Cartoon Network joins in the celebrations for the Warner Bros. centenary with a pop-up channel that is entirely dedicated to cult series from Warner Bros. Animation. From 13 to 23 April the Cartoon Network + 1 (608 on Sky) will change into THE LOONEY SCOOBY GO! CHANNEL. The channel will feature three iconic shows created in various eras of the studio’s existence: Looney Tunes, the most classic series and the one most identified with the WB Animation brand, Scooby-Doo, one of the most iconic franchises of all time and which focuses on mystery and comedy, and the legendary teen show Titans Go!, the DC universe heroes who are adored by today’s kids.

From 26 March, all of the channels from the Warner Bros. Discovery portfolio will show the international campaign to celebrate the 100th anniversary (link video) and, from 27 March to 9 April, a promotion designed for the Warner Bros.-branded celebratory cinema week (link video).
What’s more Warner TV will dress-up its on-air graphics for the party: as well as during commercial breaks, there will be dedicated endpages and elevators, and the channel bugs and bumpers will also swap the classic brand colours to the celebratory centenary gold.

CONSUMER PRODUCTS

To celebrate the Warner Bros. centenary, OVS has recently launched a kids’ collection featuring the iconic WB shield, Looney Tunes personalities and a lot of other characters who have created the history of the studio. The collection is on sale in all OVS stores and online, and will be shown in shop windows of the chain’s branches until 17 April.
And the surprises don’t end there, as OVS will present a second collection, one for the whole family, in-store starting at the end of August which will focus on Looney Tunes and the series’ irreverent irony.
As centenary ambassadors, the Looney Tunes stars will have the job of representing the large Warner Bros. fanbase, by really dressing up as some of the studio’s most iconic characters, in an unmissable, fun, mash-up project.

Further enriching the WB100-themed range will be ‘Spin Master’, with action figures of the Warner Bros. characters, such as Batman and Bugs Bunny in a mash-up version, and a special edition of Harry Potter characters in a centenary pack. Collectable fans will love the WB100 celebratory Funko figures, in an incredible limited edition which includes Looney Tunes dressed up as Scooby-Doo characters, a new line featuring characters from Gillian’s Island and more centenntial products releasing throughout the year. Famosa Softies will mean the youngest in the family will also be able to take part in the centenary.

Monnalisa will also join in the Warner Bros. centenary celebrations and in the Celebrating Every Story campaign, with the launch of a capsule collection inspired by the legendary Tom & Jerry. This is a confirmation of Monnalisa’s partnership with Warner Bros. and the love and interest for the characters created by the studio, who over the years continue to enrich high-end kids’ clothes collections. For the centenary, Monnalisa will also launch a series of projects through its official channels, on its e-commerce platform and in its own stores. These will include themed material and promotional activities linked to buying Warner Bros. collection products.

The Games Academy–Funside brand will celebrate Warner Bros. with a rich variety of products dedicated to this important anniversary, which will join the wide range of Harry Potter and DC Comics merchandising, and that of many other films which is already on sale in over forty shops which have now become part of the chain. Games Academy – Funside offers a celebratory assortment, with a range that is full of new material provided by official licensors.

The Italian subsidiary of the French firm Abysse Corp. distributes a range dedicated to the anniversary in Italy. It includes posters, cups, notebooks and drinking bottles. The line celebrates the most iconic movies and stories made by WB cinema and animation.

EXPERIENCES: To celebrate the Warner Bros. centenary, Warner Bros. Discovery Global Themed Entertainment and Fever will launch “Candlelight: 100 Years of Warner Bros.”, a series of commemorative concerts which will get to over 100 cities around the world. From The Lord of the Rings to The Wizard of Oz, from Casablanca to Friends, Batman and Harry Potter, the Candlelight concert will allow you to take flight on the wings of the studio’s most significant soundtracks, music that has accompanied one hundred years of unforgettable history. In Italy the concerts are scheduled to be held in Milan (28 April), Rome and Turin (23 September) and Bologna (30 September). Tickets can be acquired HERE