Bloomberg reported on the expected reorganization of leadership at Paramount after the pending Skydance acquisition has been completed next year. Since last June, Paramount has been led by an “Office of the CEO” that is staffed by three executives – Brian Robbins, Chris McCarthy, and George Cheeks – who each oversee different divisions of the company.
This unusual structure was put in place last June, after the firing of former CEO Bob Bakish. At the time, it was viewed as a stopgap measure that would fill the role until the long-term fate of the company had been determined.
Since 2021, Brian Robbins has led Paramount’s movie studio and streaming divisions, referred to as Paramount Pictures. During his tenure, Robbins has overseen long-term franchises including “Transformers”, “Sonic”, “A Quiet Place”, “Scream” and “PAW Patrol” and has been commended for his success with the theatrical release of “Top Gun: Maverick”, the highest-grossing movie of 2022.
Robbins has also helped the Paramount+ streaming service expand to serve more than 72 million subscribers and report two profitable quarters in a row. However, both the studio and streaming divisions are facing their challenges, with the film studio likely to be unprofitable in 2024 and Paramount+ remaining a much smaller competitor in comparison to Netflix, Disney+, and Amazon Prime Video.
According to Bloomberg, Ellison is leaning towards replacing Robbins with Dana Goldberg, Skydance’s current head of production. Paramount+ would be taken over by Cindy Holland, a longtime advisor to Ellison. Skydance plans to double down on Paramount’s studio and streaming business while paring back its television networks to the point that they may eventually fold into the company’s streaming division.
