WBD hires ITV’s Sasha Breslau to lead content acquisitions for HBO Max UK and Ireland

Warner Bros Discovery (WBD) has appointed Sasha Breslau from UK commercial broadcaster ITV as VP of content acquisitions for HBO Max in the UK and Ireland.

Sasha Breslau

Breslau will oversee content sourcing, rights negotiations, evaluations for acquisition and pre-buy opportunities, identifying content partnerships as well as partnering with other stakeholders on strategic programming decisions for HBO Max in the region.

Breslau joins WBD from ITV, where she most recently served as head of content acquisitions. During her tenure at ITV, she led the acquisition and licensing of more than 8,000 hours of content for the launch of ITVX, and secured high-profile titles including Love & Death, The Twelve, One Tree Hill and The Originals.

She also led the acquisition of the landmark Oprah with Meghan & Harry interview in 2021, which drew ITV’s largest audience since the 2018 Fifa World Cup and negotiated significant multi-year deals with Disney for Family Guy and American Dad.

Breslau will take up the role in October ahead of the streamer’s launch in the UK and Ireland in early 2026 and will report to Ragnhild Thorbech, senior VP of programming and acquisitions across EMEA.

The service will be the home of programming from HBO Originals and Max Originals as well as films from Warner Bros Pictures and DC Studios together with 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.”