Tom Rothman Inks Multi-Year Contract Extension As Sony Motion Picture Group Chairman
Tom Rothman, who oversees all of Sony Pictures’ motion picture operations worldwide including Columbia Pictures, TriStar Pictures, Screen Gems, Sony Pictures Animation, Sony Pictures Classics and Sony Pictures Imageworks, has recently seen his contract re-upped in a multi-year deal.
Rothman came to the Culver City lot via 20th Century Fox in late 2013, where he served as the chairman of TriStar Pictures. In February 2015 he was named to his current role of chairman of Sony Pictures Entertainment Motion Picture Group.
His contract renewal is well-deserved: He’s turned around the studio, with last year’s slate posting the highest ultimate profits in more than a decade. Rothman has continually been known as a studio boss who takes big risks on the screen at reasonable costs. During his tenure, he led his production, marketing and distribution teams to make Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle, the studio’s highest-grossing movie in Columbia Pictures’ 100-year history. The sequel will lens in January and hit theaters Christmas 2019.
This summer, Sony Animation saw Hotel Transylvania 3 book more than a half-billion at the global box office. During the 2018 fiscal year, Sony saw seven films cross the century mark at the B.O., with the studio earning 16 Oscar nominations last year including wins for Blade Runner 2049, Call Me by Your Name and A Fantastic Woman.
With Jumanji 2 and Spider-Man: Homecoming (produced with Disney/Marvel), Rothman saw two titles cross the $900M mark, the first in the studio’s box office annals. His tenure continues to reinvigorate existing Sony IP, with the upcoming Girl in the Spider’s Web, Marvel’s Venom and the animated Lord and Miller Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse; next year’s new Men in Black, Spider-Man Homecoming: Far From Home and Elizabeth Banks’ Charlie’s Angels; and new installments of Peter Rabbit, Angry Birds and Zombieland.
Another big plus, he landed Quentin Tarantino’s next feature, Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood, then facilitated the casting coup of Leonardo DiCaprio, Brad Pitt and Margot Robbie in the same film for the first time.
Said Sony Pictures chairman and CEO Tony Vinciquerra said in a statement, “The film studio has made great progress in its turnaround efforts due to Tom’s ability to leverage not only his own skills and expertise, but the talents of an exceptionally strong team of executives in the Motion Picture Group. The team is really hitting its stride under Tom’s leadership and guidance, and we look forward to further progress and success in the years to come.”
Added Rothman: “I am very grateful to Yoshida-san and Tony, and all my terrific colleagues around the world, for the support they have given our efforts at the Studio. We feel pretty great about how far we have come, but know that there is still more to do, so I am pleased to continue the effort. Because of all the filmmaking talent here and the awesome people who work here, this job is a privilege, and I am committed to doing the best I can to continue to honor that privilege in the years to come.”
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