Paramount chief on the way out as studio seeks fresh start

Paramount Pictures chief Brad Grey may be celebrating a host of Oscar nominations next weekend but his days as a Viacom employee are almost over, sources tell On The Money.Grey has had a spectacular run in Tinseltown given how tough the past few years have...

Paramount chief on the way out as studio seeks fresh start

Paramount Pictures chief Brad Grey may be celebrating a host of Oscar nominations next weekend but his days as a Viacom employee are almost over, sources tell On The Money.

Grey has had a spectacular run in Tinseltown given how tough the past few years have been but his new boss Viacom CEO Bob Bakish is on the look out for fresh eyes.

Bakish is currently on an investor roadshow. While analysts have been receptive to his vision for remaking the once invisible pop culture purveyor, they want to hear how long the studio is going to continue to leak cash. Film lost $445 million in its fiscal full year 2016 versus $111 million in the year prior though September 30.

By comparison, Disney’s top movie “Finding Dory” booked $486 million last year.

Paramount’s Oscar nominated movies include: “Arrival” and “Fences,” we hope Grey will be there to take a final lap.

Paramount has had three movies that grossed more than $100 million over the past two years: “Star Trek Beyond,” ($158.8 million) “Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation,” ($195 million) and “SpongeBob Movie: Sponge out of Water.” ($162.9 million)

To be sure, Paramount has had a fair amount of turn-over.

Paramount Pictures Rob Moore exited late last year, as did the chief operating officer, Frederick Huntsberry. In February 2015, president of Paramount Film Group, Adam Goodman exited. Goodman had replaced John Lesher, who also held the same title. Lesher spent 18 months on the job. Grey, who brought talent including J.J. Abrams and Leonardo DiCaprio to the fold, began running the studio operation in January 2005.

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