Prolific Media Rights Agent Ron Bernstein Joins APA (EXCLUSIVE)

Matt Donnelly
Updated ·3 min read

Ron Bernstein, a veteran rights agent who has brokered adaptive deals for modern classics like “No Country for Old Men” and “Blackhawk Down,” has joined the Agency for the Performing Arts.

He will serve as senior vice president of media rights, a mantle he will take up after a 23-year run at ICM Partners. Bernstein joins APA partners Steve Fisher and Debbie Deuble Hill in the publishing and media rights group. APA president Jim Osbourne announced Bernstein’s hire, effective Thursday. The addition is another big score for APA as the representation business continues to shift amid consolidation.

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Over a long and enviable career, Bernstein has represented some of the most acclaimed novelists, authors and journalists in the marketplace and sold the rights to countless feature films, limited series and shows to major buyers.

Clients expected to join Bernstein at APA include Margaret Atwood, Paul Auster, Mark Bowden, John Burdett, “Sex and the City” creator Candace Bushnell, “Lemony Snicket” author Daniel Handler, Alice Hoffman, Andrew Holleran, Barbara Kingsolver, Dean Kuipers and more.

Many of the agent’s titles have become Oscar-bait adaptations including Steven Spielberg’s “Lincoln,” Danny Boyle’s “Jobs,” Lee Daniels’ “The Butler” and Clint Eastwood’s “Richard Jewell.” Bernstein has also been behind big-screen fare like “He’s Just Not That Into You,” “12 Strong,” “Shooter” and “Beautiful Boy.”

On the TV side, he’s credited with reinvigorating the limited series category, especially narrative retreads of true crime. Bernstein did the deal for what became “American Crime Story: The People v O.J. Simpson,” an Emmy magnet and a rebirth of sorts for mega-creator Ryan Murphy. He also delivered Hulu its flagship hit in Atwood’s “The Handmaid’s Tale.”

Upcoming films he represented rights for include Ava DuVernay’s “Caste,” inspired by Isabell Wilkerson’s book, and “Stone Mattress,” based on an Atwood’s short story set up at Amazon with Lynn Ramsey directing.

“Simply put, Ron Bernstein is one of the most accomplished and well respected agents in the media rights business and we are honored that he and his illustrious clients are joining APA, they are an excellent addition to what we are building,” Osborne told Variety.

Prior to ICM Partners, which was acquired last year by CAA, Bernstein spent 13 years at Gersh where he founded the media rights department. Over the years, he has worked with luminaries like James Baldwin, Don De Lillo, Joan Didion and John Gregory Dunne, Charles Frazer, Alan Furst, Chang Rae Kee and Haruki Murakami.

For anyone keeping score, Bernstein’s addition makes 21 new agents to join APA in the past year — 16 of which came from competitors including CAA, ICM Partners or UTA. The hires have bolstered departments including talent, literary, alternative TV, branding, music and comedy touring. The company has also entered a strategic partnership with boutique publisher Europa Content, formed a podcasting venture with Workhouse Media, and signed Atari to sell films and series based on the company’s iconic IP.

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