David Ellison wants to turbocharge Paramount‘s ambitions in the consumer products and live experiences space, and is bringing on a veteran of The Walt Disney Co. and Mattel to help him do it.
Paramount said Wednesday that it is hiring Josh Silverman, most recently executive vp and chief franchise officer for Mattel, to become president of global products and experiences. He previously worked at Marvel and Disney, where he oversaw the company’s consumer products licensing and retail business, including its owned and operated stores.
At Paramount, Silverman will oversee consumer products, live experiences, publishing, partnerships, and e-commerce businesses, and will report to Jeff Shell.
He will work with executives at Paramount Pictures, Nickelodeon and the company’s other studios and platforms to reimagine their characters and IP in new ways.
While consumer products and licensing have been a staple of media businesses for years, experiential entertainment has emerged as a growth area. While Disney and Universal rule the theme park business, opportunities have arisen for licensing, such as the deal to bring SpongeBob to Universal’s upcoming family park in Texas, and the Nickelodeon-branded indoor theme park in New Jersey.
An immersive experience based on the Paramount film franchise Top Gun is also set to open in Las Vegas.
“I’m incredibly energized by the entrepreneurial spirit across Paramount,” said Silverman in a statement. “As we build global ecosystems for fans, there’s an extraordinary opportunity to unlock new value by leveraging renowned IP and mining the portfolio for fresh stories and experiences. I’m excited to collaborate across teams to deepen the emotional connection between audiences and the brands, franchises, and characters they love.”
“Josh brings a combination of strategic vision, deep industry experience, and a proven track record of driving global growth across beloved brands and franchises,” Shell adds. “We are excited to see him harness Paramount’s world-class library and creative engines to reach our audiences in new and exciting ways and fuel the expansion of our consumer products and experiences businesses.”
Silverman takes on oversight of consumer products from Pam Kaufman, who announced her exit from the company last week. Kaufman also oversaw the company’s international business lines. Ellison has been staffing up the company since acquiring it over the summer, including the recent addition of Makan Delrahim as chief legal officer.
