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WarnerMedia Entertainment Chief Marketing Officer Chris Spadaccini to Exit

Joe Otterson
·3 min read

Chris Spadaccini, chief marketing officer of WarnerMedia Entertainment, is exiting his role at the company, Variety has confirmed.

Spadaccini is an HBO veteran, having been with the company for 21 years upon the time of his departure. He was named CMO of WarnerMedia Entertainment in 2019.

“My 21 years at HBO have been nothing short of an extraordinary experience,” Spadaccini said in a statement. “It has been an honor and a privilege to lead a marketing team that consistently sets the standard for excellence across the industry. I am filled with enormous gratitude for the opportunity to have supported the vision of some of the world’s greatest storytellers and to have shaped the image of the HBO brand, which continues to be the gold standard in television.”

Spadaccini had previously served as executive vice president of marketing for HBO, overseeing brand and program campaigns for HBO and Cinemax, as well as marketing initiatives for digital distribution platforms like HBO Now, HBO Go and HBO.com. He was named to that position in October 2016. The year prior, he supervised the marketing behind HBO Now.

He started at HBO in January of 1999, working his way through the ranks of executives who devised campaigns for individual HBO programs. During his time at the outlet, Spadaccini has helped drive awareness of series ranging from “Game of Thrones” to more recent entries like “Watchmen” and “Succession,” both of which took home multiple Emmy Awards this year.

“One of the first shows Chris and I worked on together was ‘Flight of the Conchords,” said Casey Bloys, head of HBO Programming. “That was 15 years ago and I have been in awe of his endless creativity ever since. ‘The Sopranos,’ ‘Veep,’ ‘Game of Thrones’ as well as this year’s big Emmy winner ‘Watchmen’ is just a short list of his and his team’s iconic campaigns. He elevated the HBO brand as the leader of marketing and I look forward to seeing what he does next.”

Before joining HBO, he worked at VH1, where he assisted in the development marketing campaigns to support the network’s image and programming. He began his career at PMK/HBH in March 1996, where he helped develop publicity campaigns for high profile celebrities and corporate clients in entertainment.

News of his departure comes as newly minted WarnerMedia CEO Jason Kilar continues to reshape the company’s executive ranks. Among those recently let go are two top HBO Max execs, Robert Greenblatt and Kevin Reilly. Others include Jeffrey Schlesinger, the president of Warner Bros. Worldwide Television Distribution

Deadline first reported Spadaccini’s exit.

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