Producer Donald De Line has been appointed vice chairman, Motion Picture Group and president, Paramount Pictures, effective Jan. 5, 2004. De Line replaces John Goldwyn, who is stepping down to become a producer at the studio in the wake of criticism that the feature slate has not only performed below expectation at the box office (including the disappointing LARA CROFT sequel), but also lacks Oscar prestige. Reporting to Sherry Lansing, chairman, Paramount Pictures, De Line is expected to pump up and diversify the studio's feature production slate during this three-year stint. His remake of THE ITALIAN JOB was Paramount's biggest hit of the year
De Line's appointment underscores a recent shake up at the studio, which had previously been very stable during Lansing's reign over the last 12 years. A new director of marketing is expected to be named before the year is out, according to VARIETY.
"I feel privileged to have enjoyed a wonderful friendship and working relationship with Donald over the past five years. He is an extraordinary producer who delivered one of our most successful movies this year, THE ITALIAN JOB. He has tremendous management experience, talent relations and creative vision. He is incredibly well respected in the industry. I am thrilled that he has agreed to leave his production company to lead our production team," Lansing said.
As president of the Motion Picture Group, Mr. De Line will be responsible for the company's annual slate of films which includes overseeing the acquisition of literary properties, development, budgeting, casting and production of motion pictures.
"I came to Paramount because Jon Dolgen, Sherry Lansing and Rob Friedman are the smartest and most successful management team in the movie business," De Line added. "I am particularly excited by this opportunity because my experience as a studio executive coupled with my five years working as a producer at Paramount give me a unique view of the entire filmmaking process. I am honored to be part of the great legacy of Paramount Pictures and I look forward to aggressively pursuing a diverse slate of films with that extraordinary team."
Donald De Line has been at Paramount Pictures since 1998 with De Line Pictures, where he produced THE ITALIAN JOB and the upcoming STEPFORD WIVES remake and WITHOUT A PADDLE.
Prior to his producing deal at Paramount, Mr. De Line spent eight years at Touchstone Pictures, and was named president of Touchstone Pictures in 1993. Under his leadership, Touchstone produced such box office hits as PRETTY WOMAN, SISTER ACT, PHENOMENON, RANSOM, CON-AIR, ARMAGEDDON and THE WATERBOY. The films he oversaw grossed more than $2.5 billion in worldwide box office receipts as well as 24 Academy Award nominations.
Bill Desowitz, former editor of VFXWorld, is currently the Crafts Editor of IndieWire.
