Warner Bros. making Las Vegas its next U.S. headquarters with UNLV

LAS VEGAS, Nev. (FOX5) - Warner Bros. Discovery will make Las Vegas its next filming headquarters and hub all in partnership with UNLV, according to University officials.

The announcement came Wednesday during a packed town hall on campus, with a number of representatives from the company and UNLV in attendance.

Warner Bros. will now have three major hubs, according to UNLV leaders, with Los Angeles and Las Vegas as domestic headquarters. Warner Bros. Studios also has an international hub in the London area in the United Kingdom.

“The future is very, very, very bright. Bringing WBD to Las Vegas to create this storied company’s third studio filmmaking hub in the world would be a transformative moment for every aspect of our society today,” said Dean Nancy Uscher of the UNLV College of Fine Arts.

“Their leaders have chosen not just Las Vegas. They have chosen UNLV,” said Bo Bernhard, Vice President of Economic Development of UNLV, calling the future Las Vegas campus the company’s “H.Q.2.”

“UNLV is poised to become the best film school in the country, one with a national, global reputation,” Bernhard said, noting the similar access granted to film schools near the company’s famed Los Angeles-area studios.

University leaders explained the possibilities for collaboration and training at Warner Bros. Studios Nevada: UNLV film students would learn in the classroom, then train on the various sound stages at the 34-acre media campus at UNLV’s Harry Reid Research & Technology Park.

PREVIOUS: Nevada leaders backing plans for a Warner Bros. Studio hold UNLV town hall

A proposed bill in the Nevada Senate would give Warner Bros. tax credits, as it seeks to establish a media campus at the Harry Reid Research and Technology Park in the Southwest Valley.

State Senator Roberta Lange is spearheading the tax credit bill.

“I wouldn’t do a bill if I wasn’t hopeful that it could pass,” Lange said to FOX5 last week at a separate town hall breaking down the details of the bill. FOX5 previously spoke to Lange about the extensive partnership with UNLV for career development to hire locals.

“It’s important to create an industry that’s going to bring more revenue into our state so that we can fund those important things like education and affordable housing in Nevada,” Lange said.

A spokesperson said that Warner Bros. Discovery will invest $900 million to build the studios, pledge $500 million of spending annually ($8.5 billion in total over 17 years) at UNLV’S Harry Reid Research & Technology Park near the 215 Beltway and Durango Drive and bring 7,500 jobs a year.

According to a Warner Bros. Discovery spokesperson, the movie company would be approved for tax credits of around $100 million per year for a period over 17 years.

Sony Pictures made a similar announcement in August about its plans for a Las Vegas campus.

Copyright 2024 KVVU. All rights reserved.