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Steven Spielberg now has two agencies working for him. In the high stakes game of representation of giants, WME on Friday signed to represent the television part of Spielberg’s business. He remains at CAA for feature representation. WME announced the signing internally late Friday. Spielberg, who began his career as a TV director, has always kept a hand in that business through DreamWorks and Amblin shingles. That includes The Pacific, the 10-part HBO miniseries that begins airing tomorrow which Spielberg exec produced with Playtone’s Tom Hanks and Gary Goetzman, The United States of Tara, ER, Rebuilding Ground Zero, Taken, Band of Brothers, and Into the West.
It’s a nice get for WME in the one-upsmanship that is part of the major agencies these days. But Spielberg has had split TV representation before. CAA repped DreamWorks Television for two years, and UTA handled it before that. Why Spielberg made the move from CAA to WME is clear since CAA’s TV department has fallen short of what it used to be. What better way to incentivize two agencies by giving television to CAA’s major rival?
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Well, that’s a statement. Typically, you hear about clients shifting around who are older or are difficult to sell (read: DeNiro, Paul Thomas Anderson, Wes Anderson).
This is the biggest filmmaker of alltime. Moreover, he’s the producer of ‘er’. The producer of ‘The Pacific’. Days before the premiere of the latter.
Let’s be clear, WME’s tv department is much more effective than CAA’s. The reverse might be said for the movie divisions. As such, Mr S made the right move.
Man… WME continues to dominate TV. Who’s the closest to them now in that arena? ICM or UTA? It certainly isn’t CAA’s – their TV department is anemic at best.
This is possibly one of the biggest signings possible. To package ($$$) Spielberg’s projects in TV considering the volume of that business is major. Everyone in the Industry knows that this is the business to be in. The Renee Z. business is just not that important anymore. Way to go, this must be making CAA nuts!!! Everyone knows that Ari is the best packager in the Industry and his team of Agents are the best at servicing clients needs. Why else would Spielberg do this? He’s a smart, successful guy….Also Fogelman is close with Spielberg which I am sure did not hurt. CAA needs to stop spending so much time trying to control 100% of that brilliantly talented unemployable list of A list actors that aren’t working. Just go down the list and see who’s available. Michelle, Nicole, Halle, and on and on and on. Not to say that CAA doesn’t have a major client list, they do. It’s just that 100 % formula doesn’t work in this economy. Not enough jobs out there. I like lean and employable. It works for me very well. Not fair but works!!!
written by a true endeavor employee!
Now this is an interesting post-worthy sign! Gamechanger for WME!
Does this mean Ari & Rick will give me a raise this year, and all this packaging money will trickle down to the lowly support staff? NO. Oh well, at least I have a job.
Doesn’t get much bigger than that. WME’s really impressed me lately.
CAA simply doesnt have the writers’ list that WME does for television. they have been producer focused for years, and as a result, they have tons of $$$$ and packages, but not a lot of stellar writers. sure, they have graham yost, ryan murphy, etc. But there is depth to the list at WME (or even UTA) that they cant match. they have 2 guys in the whole department who are any good.
we’ll see what happens next. i’m sure they will go try to hire the best tv agents from uta wme and icm to fix this. Kinda like when they got Aloni/Heyman//Feldman/Baumgarten to help mitigate feature issues.
Great signing for WME — but now they have to do some real soul searching within their department so they don’t screw this one up. Rick Rosen would def be a good fit for Spielberg’s business — Greenburg not so much.
I am thoroughly disgusted with Spielberg’s disloyalty to CAA. This town is DISGUSTING! CAA MADE Spielberg who he is today!
idiot.
Uhhh…you guys. Would you even know sarcasm if it cracked you in the face? I was kidding. “KID-DING.”
Wow. Thanks for helping lower the common sense barometer around here. I’m going to go shower now.
Actually, Spielberg didn’t go to CAA until well after he was established as his generation’s most commercially successful director.They have ALWAYS needed him more than he needs them.
To Indred: I think Mr S had enough talent to thrive anywhere.
P.S. What`s Warren B. up to? How`s his skin?
I think Indrid was kidding.
Huge!!
I like the White House screening of The Pacific with Steven Spielberg and the Emanuel Brothers synergy.
how long has Spielberg been resting on Spielberg. He’s been using the sames tricks since forever. He draws people in with the gimmicks. Its not for the storytelling. He keeps recycling plots and characters. People tune in for the familiar and camera work. He has become boring. I can tell you whats going to happen before it happens with his works. He can find talent but having him as director, writer, or anything else does not make continued ratings guaranteed. You hear people on the street talk about the first episode of his miniseries then nothing.
As a former TV client at WME I have to feel bad for mr. spielberg as he won’t get as much attention as he thinks. However, if he were to change his name to Seth McFarlane, then he would have hass, hodes and wellington so far up his ass. Just a suggestion, Mr. S.
richard weitz reps seth macfarlane …
spielberg’s huge but WME sucks. the place is a mess. i guarantee this will be one of those — he’s there for 6 months and bails. i’m out of there and couldn’t be happier.
Rick,
I hope you realize that right now, Ari & Co. are trying to figure out how to bring him over in all areas.
What is up with Wellington’s name being bandied about? Sure nice guy – agree BIG HEAD – but FAR from a game changing agent. Spielberg won’t be hanging with TW. Who will it be Rosen, Hodes, Solo?
The question is – is Speilberg a big enough client for Matt Solo to return his calls? Let’s see. I bet Solo might start returning calls now.
tom is a rising star. ss would be lucky to have a young gun like him on the team.
good observation.
So CAA packages the biggest miniseries of all time for DreamWorks TV with HBO, another major miniseries with AMC, sets up two high profile pilots for DreamWorks TV with Showtime, facilitates DreamWorks TV’s financing and signs and hands over Weekly World News so DreamWorks has exclusive TV rights to a library of stories and characters that will last a lifetime of development, and the company decides to sign with WME?
All because a former WME agent-turned-manager brings TERRANOVA to DreamWorks TV and Showtime presses WME for their showrunner to take the helms of THE BORGIAS? Crazy.
Every CAA agent on the DreamWorks TV team sold development this year and the lead agent had, hands down, the biggest pilot pick up rate of any single agent in the business. Sounds like the problem wasn’t the representation.
Don’t worry. Just like Reese, DeNiro and Renee, Spielberg will realize WME is mostly bravado and a lot less substance and return. CAA is just a better run place with more talented agents from top down.
I’ll take Craig Erwich’s or Tom Wellington’s big heads any day!!!! They are great guys.
Stumped – good comment.
You guys need a new Ari pic!
Despite this, I still think UTA has enough juicem to give CAA, WME and ICM a serious ass-kicking.
Good for WME, bad for CAA. Bet they aren’t happy.
How long do we have to keep looking at that photo of that ugly fucking douchebag with the outstretched arms? He’s everything that’s wrong with this business. Total throwback to the 30s furmongers that ran studios, with one exception: the furmongers at least had taste and (in some cases) a talent for packaging something other than sheer buzz. And his gross brother in the White House. Though I’m guessing the brother is at least literate. Uck. They both make my skin crawl.