Michael Brooks will have an expanded role at Warner Bros. Discovery

Michael Brooks has been appointed general manager for Australia and New Zealand at Warner Bros. Discovery.

In addition to his existing role as MD at Warner Bros. International Television Production Australia, Brooks will immediately assume the expanded role, reporting to James Gibbons and Ronald Goes, president of WBITVP.

Brooks has been with the company since 2016 and previously spent more than a decade in the US, where he held leadership positions at BBC Studios and Endemol Shine North America.

In the newly expanded role, Brooks will locally oversee all non-theatrical operations, including networking and streaming, content licensing and home entertainment, consumer products and games, as well as WBITVP Australia. WBITVP New Zealand will remain within its current reporting structure at WBITVP headquarters in London and will not be part of Brooks’ expanded remit.

In addition, the current chief financial officer of APAC, Justin Emmer, has decided to leave the company and will depart at the end of this year. “[Emmer] has been an excellent partner to me and the leadership team in driving our financial activities and supporting the region’s strategic objectives. I would like to thank Justin for his dedication and wish him the best of luck for the future,” said Gibbons.

Nilesh Zaveri has been appointed SVP, CFO & COO, APAC, and will join WBD on September 9, reporting to Trey Turner, CFO of International. In this dual role, Zaveri will lead APAC’s financial activities and support business operations and planning across the region, contributing to growth projects and driving operational excellence and efficiency.

Zaveri joins WBD with more than 20 years of pan-Asian leadership experience. Most recently, he was MD of VICE Media Group’s APAC business, where he successfully launched the regional business to drive revenue and audience growth. Previously, Nilesh held regional CFO roles at VICE, Discovery and Fox.

“By combining a strong global mindset with a deep understanding of industry dynamics and local markets, Zaveri will be a key partner for our APAC operations as we look to further scale in the region,” WBD said.