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It has been so busy tonight that tips on this news have been sitting in my email account since 3 PM: Lionsgate EVP of the Motion Picture Group Wolfgang Hammer is headed to CBS Films as the new COO to work for President & CEO Amy Baer and oversee acquisitions, finance, legal, and business affairs, including co-productions and creative decisions. 
Hammer had only been with Lionsgate for 2 1/2 years, and is replacing Bruce Tobey who served as CBS Film’s first COO and will be departing the company at the end of the year. ”Bruce got this division up and running, and established for the days ahead,” Baer said in a statement. “I have great respect and gratitude for his talent, commitment and his contributions to CBS Films. We wish him the best in all of his future endeavors.”
Hammer’s hiring follows the box office tanking of the first 3 productions by CBS Films including Faster this weekend. ”Hammer will report to Baer and the pair will work together on the division’s business and creative decisions,” the official CBS Films release said. “Wolfgang’s aptitude for innovative deal making, strong background in international financing, his excellent relationships with talent and his passion for the business of movies make him the perfect addition to our team,” said Baer. Prior to Lionsgate, where he began as VP of Production, Hammer, who’s Austrian, was at Media Rights Capital (MRC) and began his industry career at the old Endeavor agency under partner/founder Tom Strickler.
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Wolfgang is a rising star, great hire.
Good hire. He’s a smart guy; I heard Les wanted him specifically to right that ship. Tough loss for Lionsgate.
Amy Baer should get the boot – she is responsible for those movies. She has a terrible rep – takes for ever to read and make decisions, is not the kind of visionary that a start-up needs.
Why does Baer still have a job? The town is full of opportunity seeking talented executives. Isn’t it time to give her the exit?!
Bruce is an incredibly kind, decent man who worked very hard to create a positive environment even as things got tough and little kindness was shown to him. Hopefully, he will find in his next venture a place that values people and treats them with respect.
This probably has a lot to do with the current goings on of Lionsgate’s ownership. It will be interesting to see how that shakes everything out, or up….
The Hammer will right the ship @ CBS
This is the best thing to happen to CBS Films. Wolfgang is not only one of the smartest executives in town, he is actually well liked. A rarity. I am sure he will turn that place around.
Wolfgang is an excellent choice. I have first hand experience of working with him and can honestly say he has great taste and knows how to nurture the right talent. A true man of film. He just ‘gets it’.
Wow. Chalk this decision up right up there with every other decision CBS Films has made. What has this guy accomplished that would indicate he is qualified for this job? The only movie he worked on at lions gate was THE NEXT THREE DAYS. I guess that movie did better than FASTER.
You are obviously such an insider you don’t even have studiosystem
Seriously…that movie was a mess.
Yeah CBS Films is not really clicking–they need to make stuff that is a bit more dangerous or at least director- or IP-driven ( have they bought any comic books to adapt?). I don’t think Amy Baer is right for the job if this year’s crop of films represents her best effort.
A great hire for CBS, and a great indication that Les Moonves is committed to the film business. With robust but steady revenue streams in television and radio, motion picture is a potential area where Les can show the stockholders growth.
Wolfgang Hammer is the type of hire that Les has used to build his businesses year after year. Fearless, innovative, non-traditional yet results oriented – it’s a great fit. And a great indication that CBS Films will continue to produce and distribute films.
I think the negativity-oriented Hollywood Community should take a calming breath; we don’t want CBS Films to disappear, and with this hire I think we have a great opportunity to see them prosper.
Replacing someone UNDER Baer is not going to fix anything. She’s a boob.
Is Mark Ross out?
And Amy Baer keeps her job??!! Wha, wha, WHAT?? This is one of the many problems with our business, this is unreal! She has managed to produce one flop after after another flop after another piece of garbage. It’s 815 am and I need a drink, I give up…
Wolfgang is smart, and a forward thinker who understands the business well.
They are lucky to have him.
Exactly what CBS Films needs. This guy is a straight shooter who moves quickly and makes decisions.
I have worked with Amy Baer – she is smart, talented, and has an amazing amount of connections. She has worked on some very successful films at Sony. I can only guess that CBS Films failures are due to the fact that someone is keeping her creative and business hands tied…
Guess again. Her first failure (sick kids, old actor, fat actor – fun for the whole family) was a project she personally developed for years at Sony. The second failure (a Rom-con with a truly despised star) was in a genre she claims to be a master of. The third failure was an action movie they thought truly would be a hit — with the Rock post Tooth Fairy. Next comes a negative pick-up remake (The Mechanic – now without Bronson) they are marketing poorly, and can attempt to duck the blame for. Her fifth failure they’ve sat on in the can for 6 months (Beastly) and have pushed out to next year cause it would shown her the door for sure (the important thing with teen stars is to wait till they’ve cooled and no one wants to see them anymore – sheer idiocy).
No one has tied her hands. She’s slit her own throat. I’ve worked with her; she’s both arrogant and lazy. She’ll get fired, get one gimme as a producer, fail at that, partner with someone else and slowly fade away. Good riddance.
You worked with Amy Baer? As what, Tom Bosley’s assistant? Of course she has a ton of connections, her dad was Mr. Cunningham. Other than that, she has done nothing but alienate people and make poor decision after poor decision.
My prediction — In three to six months, we’re going to see an announcement that Wolgang Hammer is the new head of CBS Films. Then I’ll come back here and say TOLDJA!
She has no business running a studio. She is a D girl.
Good hire for sure…changes needed to be made
Next up…Marketing…Debbie MIller’s team with Terry full court Press looking over their shoulders
Wolfgang Hammer perfect for Jason Statham and “The Mechanic” up next…bring it CBS Films!
So this guy has worked at mrc, lgf and now cbs. If he was so good at his job, then wouldn’t he be working somewhere that actually is successful? Nice guy I’m sure, but clearly not smart enough to keep working at money pits.
Let’s hope for everyone’s sake it’s not like re-arranging deck chairs on the Titanic. You can have the best marketing, PR, sales and distribution team in the business but if the films being produced aren’t meeting the demands of the current movie-going audience, all the best intentions and hard work won’t produce profitable box-office results. Then again, the same can be said for having a great film, but having terrible staff. “Extraordinary Measures”, “The Back-Up Plan” and “Faster” didn’t offer anything that hasn’t already been done, and done better. Cumulatively the team at CBS Films has decades of experience and many box-office hits among them. They should be able to do better if they can find better material and talent, and I hope they do.
Is that you, Amy? Or did you make your sad assistant write this?
Not even close. Never met her, don’t know her, don’t even know what she looks like. But when a film (or in this case, films) fail, it’s never one person’s fault any more then when a film (or films) succeed, it’s to one one person’s credit. There are a lot of good people working over at CBS Films, and EVERY studio has their fair share of flops. That’s how entertainment (TV and music included) works. The successes pay for the failures. It just so happens that the first few out of the gate at CBS were bad choices. CBS Films may very well be crawling as it learns to walk, and will have to learn to walk, before it runs. But it’d be a sucker’s bet to count them out just yet. Just the humble opinion of a 20-year industry veteran.
Wait…. Wait, she didn’t run ER? Neil? Fuck….