David Zaslav’s ascension to the throne of WarnerMedia isn’t expected to be finalized until mid-2022, but he’s already busy beefing up his Hollywood bona fides. The Discovery C.E.O was in L.A. this week, so Endeavor’s Ari Emanuel threw him a “welcome” party on Tuesday night at his Beverly Hills estate. Charlize Theron, Robert Downey, Jr. and other stars were on the invite list, but it’s August, so I’m not sure who actually showed up.

Ari tried to get me not to write about the party, which I understand because Zaz is sensitive to the perception that he’s jumping the gun. But Emanuel—always a connector—has staged these get-togethers a couple times for Zaslav, and I think it’s smart for a guy who’s accustomed to dealing with unscripted producers and “talents” like Dr. Pimple Popper and the Deadliest Catch fishermen to solidify relationships with actual stars and creatives. You know who didn’t do this kind of talent outreach? The AT&T guys, and look how that turned out.