Say Goodbye to Stanley Tucci: CNN Cutting Back on Original Shows, Documentaries In Cost-Cutting Move, Per Report
Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images for Warner Bros. Discovery
Viewers will reportedly soon be deprived of actor Stanley Tucci dining on exquisite Italian food on CNN.
In the network’s latest cost-cutting move since falling under the Warner Bros. Discovery umbrella, CNN will be cutting back on original shows and documentaries, according to a the New York Times.
The report states shows like Tucci’s Searching for Italy are “going away” as CNN pivots on how it tackles long form content.
“This was a very difficult decision to make, and it was based, in large part, on the ever-increasing cost of commissioning third-party premium content,” CNN head Chris Licht wrote in an email to employees on Friday.
The network will reportedly explore the creation of a studio to focus on long form content, keeping costs closer to home. Amy Entelis, CNN executive vice president for talent and content development, will be heading up that effort.
Licht called long form content an “important pillar” of CNN’s programming even with the new change.
“I want to be clear that longform content remains an important pillar of our programming,” he reportedly wrote in the email to employees.
Some of CNN’s most acclaimed programming has been acquired documentary-style projects that stray from tradition news, like Anthony Bourdain’s Parts Unknown or the more recent Searching for Italy, which has won two Emmy Awards for Outstanding Hosted Nonfiction Series or Special since debuting in 2021.
CNN’s latest change follows Licht reportedly sending an email to CNN employees, signaling layoffs on the horizon.
“All this together will mean noticeable change to this organization. That, by definition, is unsettling. These changes will not be easy because they will affect people, budgets, and projects,” he wrote.
Other recent changes at the network have included the departure of Brian Stelter and the cancellation of the long-running Reliable Sources, as well as the swift death sentence to the CNN+ streaming service.
