CAA’s Bryan Lourd Fills UCLA Symposium Keynote Spot Replacing Ex-WarnerMedia Chairman Bob Greenblatt

CAA’s Bryan Lourd will take over as the keynote speaker for the 44th Annual UCLA Entertainment Symposium Wednesday, replacing Bob Greenblatt, the former Chairman of WarnerMedia Entertainment.

More from Deadline

• AT&T CFO John Stephens: WarnerMedia Layoffs Were "Not Because We Needed To Adjust Anything" After HBO Max Bow

• Peter Bart: Corporate Bloodletting & Oscar Uncertainty Add To Exec Suite Pandemic Depression

• Jeffrey Schlesinger, Ron Sanders & Kim Williams Among Top Executive Departures In WarnerMedia Layoffs

In a virtual sit-down interview with powerhouse attorney Ken Ziffren, the uberagency Managing Partner and Co-Chairman will now be the yearly media conference’s marquee attraction in a session that goes online on August 12, at 5 p.m. PT. The 2020 installment of the UCLA Entertainment Symposium was originally scheduled for late March at the West L.A. campus, but was put on hold due to the coronavirus pandemic, as Deadline exclusively reported.

In a case of unfortunate phrasing, in more ways than one, Greenblatt’s keynote was initially entitled “It’s the End of the World as We Know It – And We Feel Fine”

Greenblatt exited WarnerMedia in a major company shake-up on August 7, along with Kevin Reilly, Chief Content Officer, HBO Max and president, TNT, TBS, and truTV and Keith Cocozza, EVP of Corporate Marketing and Communications. Warner Bros. chief Ann Sarnoff took oversight of all network, film and TV studio and streaming assets.

Sponsored by the UCLA School of Law’s Ziffren Center for Media, Entertainment, Technology and Sports Law, the Annual Entertainment Symposium is usually a multi-day live gathering of top lawyers, industry executives, managers and producers. Students attending the event not only receive exposure to Hollywood’s top decision makers, but get some ULCA credit too.

Repositioned because of COVID-19 and public health restrictions on large scale gatherings in LA County, this year’s symposium has taken place as a series of webinars on successive Wednesdays, July 22 and 29, August 5 and concluding this week.

Greg Evans contributed to this report

Best of Deadline

• U.S. Coronavirus Update: New Cases Break Record 70,000 For The First Time; Infections Up 40% Since Early July

• Coronavirus: Movies That Have Halted Or Delayed Production Amid Outbreak

• Hong Kong Filmart Postponed Due To Coronavirus Fears; Event Moves Two Weeks Before Toronto

Sign up for Deadline's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.