Industry heavyweight joins WBD ahead of streamer’s UK launch next year, with Italian counterpart also appointed
Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) has hired ITV’s Sasha Breslau to lead acquisitions for HBO Max in the UK and Ireland.
Breslau will become vice president of content acquisitions in October, ahead of the streamer’s launch next year, and will oversee content sourcing, rights negotiations, evaluations for acquisition and pre-buy opportunities.
She will also work on strategic programming decisions for HBO Max in what WBD described as “one of [our] most important international markets.”
Breslau will report to Ragnhild Thorbech, senior vice president of programming and acquisitions for WBD in EMEA, and will help shape content strategy for HBO Max whilst ensuring “a compelling and diverse content offering for UK and Irish audiences”, the US studio said.
Breslau was most recently head of content acquisitions at ITV and was a key force in establishing the content mix for streamer ITVX and ITVX Premium.
She led the acquisition and licensing of over 8,000 hours of premium content for the launch of ITVX, picking up titles including Love & Death, The Twelve, One Tree Hill, and The Originals.
Breslau also led the acquisition of the Oprah with Meghan & Harry interview in 2021, which drew ITV’s largest audience since the 2018 World Cup and negotiated significant multi-year deals with Disney for Family Guy and American Dad.
WBD will roll HBO Max out in the UK in early 2026, with an offering that include exclusive access to HBO Originals and Max Originals, as well as films from Warner Bros. Pictures and DC Studios together with premium live sport with TNT Sports.
Breslau said: “HBO’s unparalleled series influenced my early decision to embark on a career in television, so the opportunity to join HBO Max as it launches here is irresistible.
“I’m thrilled to be working alongside Ragnhild and her talented team, and I look forward to collaborating with new and established partners to build on HBO Max’s streaming success.
“I’m extremely grateful to my brilliant, dedicated colleagues and friends at ITV. Huge thanks to them for all their support and hard work over many rewarding and successful years.”
ITV will begin the process to recruit a replacement for Breslau imminently.
Italian expansion
WBD has also appointed Prime Video exec Alessandro Volpato as director of acquisitions for HBO Max Italy, with a remit that will see him lead negotiations with Italian and European studios, distributors, and independent producers.
He joins having been senior manager of content acquisition at Prime Video & Amazon Studios, working across original Italian productions such as Pesci Piccoli, Sconfort Zone and Sono Lillo.
He also worked on international titles like Those About to Die, and joins having previously worked for Warner Bros. International as manager of international TV distribution in London. Before that, Volpato was part of the company’s strategy team, working between the UK capital and LA.
Volpato reports to Joana Silva, vice president of programming and acquisitions, and will also work with the wider EMEA streaming acquisitions team to evaluate pan-European projects. HBO Max will roll out in Italy next year.
The hires come as HBO Max’s roll-out nears 100 countries, with launches earlier this week in EMEA and APAC.
The upcoming launches in Italy and the UK are being closely watched, with HBO originals no longer being exclusively available via Sky.
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