Paramount executive Emma Watts resigns as President of Motion Picture Group

Paramount Pictures

SEPTEMBER 27, 2021 - Emma Watts has resigned from her post as the president of the Paramount Motion Picture Group. News of her resignation was published by The Hollywood Reporter over the weekend.

Watts came to Paramount last summer, during the height of filming restrictions due to the COVID-19 pandemic. She was brought in by former Paramount CEO Jim Gianopulos, with whom she had previously worked at Fox. In August of 2020, Watts put an indefinite hold on the proposed film from Fargo director Noah Hawley in an attempt to choose a clear path for the next Star Trek film. At the time, it had been reported Hawley's film would feature a deadly virus. Given the seriousness of the pandemic, it's possible the studio may have been looking to go a direction that wouldn't hit quite so close to home for audiences.

According to THR, Watts was the likely favorite to succeed Gianopulos as CEO of Paramount, a role which ended up going to Nickelodeon chief Brian Robbins. In a memo to the staff, Robbins did not discuss the details of her resignation, but praised Watts, calling her "incredibly talented". Before joining Paramount, Watts served as president of production for 20th Century Fox/20th Century Studios. In that role, she oversaw production for top earning franchises such as X-Men, Deadpool, Mission: Impossible and Transformers.