Warner Bros. Discovery's Gerhard Zeiler to Receive 2026 International Emmy Directorate Award
Gerhard Zeiler, president of international at Warner Bros. Discovery, will receive the 2026 International Emmy Directorate Award at the 54th International Emmy Awards Gala on 23 November in New York City.
The International Academy of Television Arts & Sciences announced the honour on 13 August (The Hollywood Reporter). The Directorate Award recognises leadership in international television, not a single show or performance.
Zeiler's career spans several of Europe and America's largest media companies. He served as secretary general of ORF, Austria's public broadcaster, before becoming CEO of RTL Group, one of Europe's biggest commercial television groups. He then led the international division of Turner Broadcasting System, the company behind channels such as CNN and Cartoon Network outside the United States.
In 2020, Zeiler was appointed president of WarnerMedia International. Two years later, the merger of WarnerMedia and Discovery created Warner Bros. Discovery, and Zeiler took charge of integrating the two companies' international operations into a single structure. He now holds strategic oversight of the company's brands and joint ventures outside the U.S. (Warner Bros. Discovery).
One result of that consolidation has been the global spread of HBO Max. The streaming service grew from launching in a single market to being available in more than 130 countries in just over three years, according to The Hollywood Reporter. That expansion placed shows from the Warner Bros. Discovery catalogue in front of subscribers across Latin America, Europe and Asia.
Bruce L. Paisner, president and CEO of the International Academy, praised Zeiler's career in a statement accompanying the announcement, citing his decades of work across broadcasting on multiple continents.
Zeiler will share the stage with another honouree at the November gala. Bela Bajaria, chief content officer at Netflix, will receive the International Emmy Founders Award — a separate prize recognising individuals who have made a lasting contribution to international television.
The International Emmy Awards themselves recognise television programming produced outside the U.S. Categories span drama, comedy, documentary, news, non-scripted entertainment, sports documentary, telenovela and TV movie/mini-series, along with performance categories and kids' programming.
For viewers, the gala on 23 November will spotlight series and executives from beyond America's borders — a growing portion of what global audiences now watch on streaming services and traditional broadcasters alike.
