How do you follow an Oscar-dominating double act like One Battle After Another and Sinners? If you’re Warner Bros., you bet big on Tom Cruise and Denis Villeneuve. The former is the frontman for two-time Best Director winner Alejandro G. Iñárritu’s top secret Digger and the latter is directing Dune: Part Three, the trilogy-capping installment in his Oscar-friendly sci-fi series. Both pricey prestige pictures are expected to be at the center of the studio’s CinemaCon 2026 presentation on Tuesday as heads Michael De Luca and Pam Abdy try to keep the momentum from their successful 2025 run going into 2026 and beyond.
One thing the duo aren’t expected to talk much about is the ongoing controversy surrounding the planned merger of Warner Bros. Discovery by Paramount Skydance. After the latter conglomerate’s owner, David Ellison, successfully fended off a challenge from Netflix, WBD is set to join the Paramount portfolio. But the merger is also facing significant opposition from Hollywood’s talent ranks. Earlier this week, over 1,000 actors, filmmakers, and creatives — including Don Cheadle, J.J. Abrams, and Villeneuve — signed an open letter making their opposition clear.
Before the Warner Bros. presentation on Tuesday, Gold Derby attended a CinemaCon breakfast hosted by Cinema United — the trade organization that organizes the week-long event — and asked head Michael O’Leary about the open letter. “We appreciate people using their voices,” O’Leary replied, adding that while Cinema United doesn’t plan to add its signature alongside Cheadle et al., they also aren’t supporting a merger that would reduce the number of legacy studios. “Nothing is inevitable,” he noted about the prospects of the merger being approved by federal regulatory bodies.
For now, Warner Bros. continues to exist as an independent studio and has a packed 2026 lineup beyond its Oscar titles. CinemaCon attendees are expecting to see new footage from DC Comics-affiliated features Supergirl and Clayface, as well as sequels like Practical Magic 2 and Mortal Kombat II. Follow along with Gold Derby’s live updates from inside the room.
