Viacom Inc.’s (NASDAQ:VIAB) Paramount Pictures is in discussion with Jim Gianopulos, the former 20th Century Fox studio chief to lead its Paramount Pictures unit, with Oscar-nominated producer Michael De Luca to become his assistant, Bloomberg has found out through close sources.
If this agreement succeeds, Gianopulos will replace Brad Grey who exited earlier this year after serving the studio for 12 years. Viacom is optimistic that the new leader will turn the company’s fortune after a hectic year of management infighting.
The company has selected its struggling Paramount Pictures film section as the key to its turnaround strategy. The latest news from NASDAQ indicates that Viacom’s publicly-owned class B shares have gained up to three percent in the trailing one-year period. The plans to consider Gianopulos to manage the company are still underway as the discussion still going on as some people suggested the deal could fail.
For some time, Viacom has been searching for new principals to restore its studio after experiencing a devastating year where the company lost funds and performed poorly in the Box Office market share index. The new recruits are part of Viacom Chief Executive Officer Bob Bakish’s strategy to restore the company’s declining entertainment businesses.
Viacom’s new management will rebuild the studio’s film slate for future projections. For instance, according to Box Office Mojo, apart from the long-in-the-works sequels and spinoffs for this year and next for “Mission: Impossible” and “Transformers,” there is no much plans underway scheduled for release from 2019 and beyond. The previous studio’s bombs included ‘Monster Trucks’ and ‘Ben-Hur.’
Bakish plans to dedicate about half of Paramount’s movie slate to developments based on TV series from cable networks such as Nickelodeon and MTV. Most of Viacom’s top Stars such as comedians Amy Schumer and Jordan Peele have moved on to other competitors. Hence, with the new management in the Paramount Pictures unit is expected to bring back the lost business. Bottom of Form
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