Four years ago, David Zaslav clinched a debt-heavy deal to merge cable mainstay Discovery Inc. — which he’d run since 2006 — with what was then called WarnerMedia. The story he told investors was that the two entities’ diverse array of media assets “are better and more valuable together.” He doesn’t believe that anymore.

Warner Bros. Discovery is to split into two, separating streaming and studios from its cable channels. The company has been burdened by debt and the decline of cable TV.

The move will put the company’s iconic movie studio, prestige TV operation, HBO and HBO Max and DC Studios into a single entity known as Streaming & Studios.