Ynon Kreiz, who is stepping down as CEO of Mattel after eight years, will join David Ellison‘s Paramount — which is on the brink of closing its mega-merger with Warner Bros. Discovery — in a senior management role, according to two industry sources.
One source close to the situation told Variety said that Ellison’s courting of Kreiz has been in the works for months and is “another ace up Ellison’s sleeve.” What specific role Kreiz will have at the merged Paramount-Warner Bros. could not be ascertained.
Reps for Paramount could not be reached for comment. A spokesperson for Mattel declined to comment. Variety has reached out to Kreiz for comment.
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Mattel on Wednesday announced that Kreiz will step down as chairman and CEO effective Oct. 2, “to take a senior leadership position at another public company.” The toy company didn’t say where Kreiz will be headed. Roger Lynch, Condé Nast’s CEO, has been named Mattel’s next CEO.
Kreiz, a veteran media exec, is the former chairman and CEO of Maker Studios, a YouTube-oriented digital content network acquired by Disney in 2014. Kreiz exited Disney in 2016 and joined Mattel in 2018. From 2008-11, he served as chairman and CEO of Endemol Group, and before that was a general partner at venture-capital firm Balderton Capital (formerly Benchmark Capital Europe) from 2005-07. Earlier in his career, Kreiz co-founded and was chairman and CEO of Fox Kids Europe.
Mattel has credited Kreiz with boosting its market share across key toy categories, ranking No. 1 globally in dolls, vehicles, and infant, toddler and preschool segments. Mattel also noted that Kreiz oversaw Mattel Studios’ first theatrical release, “Barbie” starring Margot Robbie, which was the top global box office film of 2023 and has stood as Warner Bros. Pictures’ highest-grossing movie of all time.
Along with Kreiz, the leadership of the combined Paramount-WBD is already taking shape. Casey Bloys, head of WBD’s HBO, is poised to assume oversight of the combined Paramount-Warner Bros. streaming business after Cindy Holland announced Tuesday she was stepping down from her role running Paramount+ and other direct-to-consumer.
Paramount is awaiting one last step before it can close the $111 billion Warner Bros. Discovery merger: the approval by a judge of the company’s settlement of the antitrust lawsuit brought by 12 state attorneys general. The judge last Thursday said she would rule on the proposed consent decree in “due course.”
