The Warner Bros. executive shuffle took a mysterious turn on Thursday, leading Hollywood to wonder what is going on at the once solid studio. Warner Bros. Pictures Group President Jeff Robinov, who built key relationships with directors like Ben Affleck and Christopher Nolan, is on his way out.
It turns out that CEO Kevin Tsujihara was not the most popular choice for the job among executives. His promotion has lead to WBTV president Bruce Rosenblum’s exit last month. And now it is widely expected that Robinov will leave, too, but just how far along his departure is is still up in the air.
Both Deadline and The Hollywood Reporter confirm that Robinov is negotiating his exit. He had been waiting for Time Warner’s Jeff Bewkes and Tsujihara to offer him a new contract, but that hasn’t happened yet. His contract doesn’t expire until next year.
According to The Wrap, Robinov hasn’t been at work for the past week (Deadline says he’s vacationing in New Mexico). The Wrap’s sources also say that he’s talking with Fox, but there was no confirmation on that from either party.
Variety notes that he hasn’t quit the studio yet. That site also says that it’s unlikely he would go to Fox, since the only opening there is the No. 2 job under chairman Jim Gianopulos. Variety’s sources also say that he’s expected on the Warner lot Monday and the situation is “fluid.”
Warner Bros. just scored a hit with Man of Steel, which had the best June opening in history. However, Robinov was in the running for Tsujihara’s job, just like Rosenblum. Robinov has been at the studio since 1997 and took his current job in 2007.