Paramount Players merged under co-heads of the studio; Jeremy Kramer leaves

EXCLUSIVE: Paramount Players comes together under the leadership of Paramount Motion Picture Group co-CEOs Mike Ireland and Daria Cherchek. As a result of the strategic reorganization, Jeremy Kramer will step down as President of Paramount Players. Kramer previously told Paramount Pictures president and CEO Brian Robbins about the matter.

Mike Ireland Daria Cherek

Mike Ireland and Daria Serek Paramount

“Partnering with our filmmakers across genres and budgets is critical to the dynamism of our studio and the long-term success of our business,” Robbins said Tuesday. “By bringing Paramount Players together as part of the larger Motion Picture Group, our goal is to optimize the power of one unit to scale the experience and skill set of the incredibly talented leadership team led by Daria and Mike.”

Robbins added, “Over the past couple of years, Jeremy has been instrumental in furthering Players as a young, entrepreneurial manufacturing unit in the industry and within our own company, and I want to thank him for all of his contributions and leadership. “.

Upcoming projects for Players include Apartment 7A, starring Julia Garner, produced by John Krasinski’s Sunday Night and Allison Seeger, and Platinum Dunes by Michael Bay, Andrew Form, and Brad Fuller; On The Come Up, an essay on Angie Thomas’ #1 New York Times bestseller sequel to The Hate U Give, with Sanaa Lathan making her directorial debut; the sci-fi thriller The Significant Other, starring Maika Monroe and Jake Lacy, directed by Dan Burke and Robert Olsen; comedy “Senior Year” starring Rebel Wilson; and writer/director Parker Finn’s Something Wrong with Rose, starring Sosie Bacon and produced by Temple Hill.

As part of the creative team realignment, Churchek and Ireland are promoting three of their key creative leads: Ashley Brooks, formerly SEVP VP, will now head development at Paramount Players, and Jonathan Gonda and Vanessa Joyce will be promoted to production EVP positions after as SVPs previously served.

“This is the beginning of a new chapter for the Paramount Motion Picture Group,” said Churchek and Ireland. “Ashley, John and Vanessa are outstanding leaders and their promotions are well deserved. At Players, Jeremy has assembled a strong team and this newly merged group will step up our efforts to make smart, fun, commercial films across a wide range of budgets and genres.”

As co-heads of the Motion Picture Group, Churchek and Ireland have led the development of the studio’s upcoming films, including the latest installments in the Transformers and Mission: Impossible franchise, Sandra Bullock’s March 25 theatrical release of The Lost City (world premiere at SXSW on Saturday), the sequel to the hit hybrid animated film Sonic the Hedgehog and Dungeons & Dragons among other titles. The two were named co-leaders in September 2021 following the departure of Emma Watts. They previously served as co-presidents of operations.

Brooks has been with Paramount Pictures since 2008. During her time at Melrose Avenue, she played a key role in the creation of several popular films, including Scream, A Quiet Place, and Paranormal Activity. Brooks began her career at DreamWorks as a production and development manager.

Joyce first joined Paramount Pictures in 2012 as creative director. Prior to that, she was a development assistant at Summit Entertainment.

Gonda joined the studio in 2017 as VP of Production. Previously, he worked at Warner Bros where he served as creative director for the feature film production group. Prior to that, he was director of development at Fox Writers Studio.

Kramer joined the studio as president of Paramount Players in 2020 after serving as an executive director and producer at 20th Century Fox, Red Hour Films, DreamWorks and Miramax. He has overseen over 60 films including All This She, Blades of Glory, Anxiety, Tropical Thunder, The Secret Life of Walter Mitty and the Deadpool franchise. Kramer started out as an independent producer with Jason Blum on Noah Baumbach’s first film, Kick and Scream.