Netflix films chief Stuber to depart, start own firm

By Dawn Chmielewski

(Reuters) -Netflix said on Monday that Scott Stuber, head of films, will leave the streaming service pioneer in March to start his own media company.

No replacement was identified. Stuber, who joined the company in 2017 to expand its slate of original films, was named the chairman of Netflix Film in January 2023.

The former Universal Studios executive used his ties to the creative community to forge relationships with such top filmmakers as Alfonso Cuarón, Spike Lee, Greta Gerwig, Rian Johnson, Jane Campion and Martin Scorsese.

Under his leadership, Netflix become the studio most nominated for Academy Awards for three consecutive years, from 2020 through 2022, and garnered eight best picture nominations, including "The Irishman," "Roma" and "The Power of the Dog."

Stuber guided Netflix to place big bets on its talent, committing $450 million to secure two "Knives Out" sequels from Johnson and a reported $200 million on the action film "The Gray Man," from the Russo Bros.

Stuber's new venture will also produce projects for Netflix, according to a Bloomberg News report.

"I hope to find new ways to continue to work together," said Chief Content Officer Bela Bajaria.

Netflix is scheduled to report fourth-quarter results after the bell on Tuesday.

(Reporting by Yuvraj Malik in Bengaluru and Dawn Chmielewski in Los Angeles; Editing by Sriraj Kalluvila and Cynthia Osterman)