Jon Feltheimer
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| Jon Feltheimer | |
|---|---|
| Name | Jon Feltheimer |
| Birth date | 1948 |
| Occupation | Media executive, CEO |
| Known for | Chief Executive Officer of Lionsgate |
| Alma mater | Tufts University, New York University |
| Spouse | Nancy Feltheimer |
Jon Feltheimer is an American media executive and film producer who served as Chief Executive Officer of Lionsgate from 2000 to 2023. He oversaw the studio's expansion into film, television, and digital distribution, shepherding franchises and acquisitions that changed the independent studio landscape. Feltheimer's career spans major Hollywood studios, talent agencies, and production companies, linking him to a network of executives, filmmakers, and financiers across Los Angeles, New York City, and international markets.
Early life and education
Feltheimer was born in 1948 and raised in the United States, completing undergraduate studies at Tufts University and graduate studies at New York University's Stern School of Business. During his formative years he was exposed to media and entertainment circles in New York City, including internships and early roles connecting him to agencies like the William Morris Agency and studios such as Paramount Pictures and Warner Bros. Pictures. His education overlapped with contemporaries from institutions including Harvard University, Columbia University, University of Southern California, and Northwestern University who later entered executive roles at companies such as Universal Pictures, 20th Century Fox, Sony Pictures, and Disney.
Career
Feltheimer began his career in the talent and corporate side of entertainment, holding positions that connected him to figures from the Agency for the Performing Arts network and corporate offices at CBS, NBCUniversal, and ABC. He moved into production and executive roles that interfaced with executives at TriStar Pictures, Miramax, New Line Cinema, DreamWorks Pictures, and independent producers tied to the Sundance Film Festival and Toronto International Film Festival. His early professional path included partnerships and negotiations with investment groups such as Providence Equity Partners, Silver Lake Partners, and private equity firms active in Hollywood consolidations, intersecting with leaders at Time Warner, ViacomCBS, Comcast, and AT&T.
Throughout his career Feltheimer worked alongside producers, directors, and talent associated with franchises and properties including collaborations tied to names such as Francis Ford Coppola, Steven Spielberg, James Cameron, Martin Scorsese, Quentin Tarantino, Kathleen Kennedy, Jerry Bruckheimer, Ron Howard, J.J. Abrams, Peter Jackson, Ridley Scott, Christopher Nolan, Tim Burton, Joel Silver, Gale Anne Hurd, Garry Marshall, Brian Grazer, Scott Rudin, Ava DuVernay, Greta Gerwig, Jordan Peele, George Lucas, Mel Gibson, Spike Lee, Woody Allen, Nicole Kidman, Meryl Streep, Tom Cruise, Leonardo DiCaprio, Robert De Niro, Denzel Washington, Angelina Jolie, Brad Pitt, George Clooney, Matt Damon, Ben Affleck, Natalie Portman, Scarlett Johansson, Jennifer Lawrence, Emma Stone.
Lionsgate tenure and leadership
Appointed CEO of Lionsgate in 2000, Feltheimer led acquisitions and greenlights that turned Lionsgate into a major independent studio, acquiring companies and libraries that involved transactions with Artisan Entertainment, Trimark Pictures, MGM Studios assets, and distribution arrangements with Netflix, Amazon Studios, Hulu, HBO, Showtime, Canal+, Sky Group, Starz, Peacock (streaming service), and international distributors like StudioCanal and BBC Studios. Under his leadership Lionsgate produced and distributed high-profile franchises and series connected to creators and talent such as Suzanne Collins (for adaptations linked to studios and producers), filmmakers tied to The Hunger Games phenomenon, the Saw (franchise), and television properties that partnered with networks including CBS, Fox Broadcasting Company, NBC, The CW, AMC (TV channel), FX (TV channel), AMC Networks.
Feltheimer negotiated mergers, capital raises, and strategic partnerships involving investment banks and advisors such as Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, J.P. Morgan, and private equity transactions reminiscent of deals by Bertelsmann, Vivendi, Yum! Brands (corporate M&A contemporaries), and digital distribution pivots paralleling moves by Apple Inc., Google, Microsoft, Disney+, Warner Bros. Discovery. He oversaw film releases that competed at festivals and awards ceremonies including the Academy Awards, Golden Globe Awards, BAFTA Awards, and Cannes Film Festival, aligning Lionsgate with talent represented by agencies like Creative Artists Agency and ICM Partners.
Other business ventures and board memberships
Beyond Lionsgate, Feltheimer served on boards and advisory panels alongside executives from Rand Corporation-adjacent think tanks, philanthropic organizations associated with names like Gates Foundation counterparts, and corporate boards connected to media, technology, and sports entities including Madison Square Garden Sports, RealNetworks, and entertainment ventures similar to mergers involving AOL, Time Inc., ViacomCBS. He participated in industry groups and guild-linked forums involving the Producers Guild of America, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, Television Academy, and trade bodies comparable to Motion Picture Association and international counterparts.
Feltheimer engaged with entrepreneurs and investors tied to digital startups and streaming technologies that involved collaborations similar to those with executives from Netflix (company), Roku, Vimeo, and Hulu (service), as well as strategic conversations with telecom and cable operators like AT&T, Verizon, Comcast Corporation, Charter Communications, and global media conglomerates such as Bertelsmann and Sony Corporation.
Personal life and philanthropy
Feltheimer is married to Nancy Feltheimer and has participated in philanthropic activities and civic engagement in Los Angeles and New York City, supporting cultural institutions such as museums and universities comparable to benefactors of Museum of Modern Art, Metropolitan Museum of Art, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Paley Center for Media, and higher education initiatives at Tufts University and New York University. His philanthropic interests have intersected with charitable organizations and foundations associated with healthcare, arts funding, and community services similar to work by the United Way, American Red Cross, and regional foundations in California. He has been profiled in media outlets including The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Variety (magazine), The Hollywood Reporter, Bloomberg News, Forbes, Fortune (magazine), Los Angeles Times, and business biographies documenting entertainment executives.