Veteran licensing boss departs roles as distribution chief and head of Republic Pictures
Paramount’s chief content licensing officer Dan Cohen is exiting the company ahead of its merger with Skydance.
Cohen, who is also president of Republic Pictures, revealed to staff in an internal memo on Thursday (31 July) that he would be leaving the company today (1 August). His exit comes a week before Skydance Media’s $8bn (£6bn) takeover of Paramount is expected to complete on 7 August. He is the latest high-profile exec to depart the company after it emerged co-chief exec Chris McCarthy would also be stepping down as the Skydance takeover completes.
Paramount did not comment on whether Cohen would be replaced in his licensing and Republic Pictures roles, but in his note to staff, he wrote he is “working with our senior leadership to ensure a smooth transition.
“As we move toward the anticipated close of the Skydance merger, I expect there will be clarity on the future leadership structure.”
Cohen revealed in his note that his decision to leave has been an “incredibly difficult” one to make.
He joined Paramount in 2017 as president of worldwide television licensing, before being upped to president of ViacomCBS Global Distribution Group in 2019. In 2021 he became the licensing boss.
Cohen was well known in the international TV distribution business for licensing Paramount films and series to outlets around the world.
Two years ago, he relaunched 80-year-old company Republic as an acquisition label distributing films through Paramount’s home entertainment, streaming and TV platforms.
Prior to his time at Paramount, he spent two decades at Disney, latterly as executive vice-president of pay TV and digital.
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