Jonathan King Exits Production President Post At Participant Media To Be Indie Producer
Participant Media announced today that Jonathan King will be stepping down from his role as President of Narrative Film and Television at Participant Media. He will to segue into independent production. His first project will be announced imminently.
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King has been with Participant Media for 12 years. The company is coming off the one-two punch of Roma and Green Book, latter of which won Best Picture. He has worked alongside Diane Weyermann, who runs Documentary Film and Television for Participant. Among the other socially conscious films he helped set included Best Picture winner Spotlight, 2018 Best Foreign Language Film winner A Fantastic Woman, and films like Wonder, Lincoln, Contagion, A Most Violent Year, The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, A Monster Calls, Beasts of No Nation, Deepwater Horizon, The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind, On the Basis of Sex, and The Help. Some frequent Participant collaborators during King’s tenure include Ava DuVernay on her film Middle of Nowhere and the upcoming limited series When They See Us, Ric Roman Waugh on the films Snitch and Shot Caller, and Pablo and Juan Larraín on the films No, Neruda and A Fantastic Woman.
Participant and King plan to collaborate in the future, including on multiple projects King has shepherded while at the company.
King will move into his new role in approximately five weeks and will work with CEO David Linde and the Participant leadership team on designing the next phase for Participant’s narrative film and television group. Upcoming narrative titles from Participant include Ava DuVernay’s limited series When They See Us with Netflix, Alejandro Landes’ Monos with Neon, Todd Haynes’ untitled feature with Focus Features, and Just Mercy with Warner Brothers.
Said founder Jeff Skoll: “Jonathan has been a pillar for good in my life for the last 12 years. He was an early and fervent believer that Participant could make an impact on global society through entertainment, specifically by telling excellent stories about the world’s most pressing issues. He’s been a steady force behind some of our greatest successes. Jonathan’s relationships with the creative community, his complete professionalism, and his sheer goodness as a human helped shape Participant to be what it is today. I am so grateful Jonathan brought his many talents to Participant years ago. We will miss him as a colleague but look forward to collaborating with him on future projects.”
David Linde, CEO of Participant Media, added: “I would not be at Participant if not for the years of friendship I have had with Jonathan. His professional track record speaks for itself – but his humanity is what is most important to all of us at Participant, and what we treasure above everything. We are very supportive of his next chapter; he’s going to hit it out of the park.”
“Words can’t express how grateful I am to Jeff for his extraordinary trust and support,” said Jonathan King. “Jeff leads by example, and his natural generosity and optimism have forever influenced my thinking about what is possible, not just in entertainment, but in the world at large. The experience of working alongside Diane, David and so many other talented and dedicated colleagues over the years will be difficult to beat. It’s impossible not to have mixed feelings, but the strongest of them is pride in what we built together, and I look forward to remaining part of the Participant family in another capacity for years to come.”
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