Indiantelevision.com > All About Cinema... > Toby Emmerich is New Line Cinema president and COO

Toby Emmerich is New Line Cinema president and COO

By Indiantelevision.com Team
(21 March 2008 3:30 pm)

MUMBAI: US media conglomerate Time Warner has announced that Toby Emmerich has been named New Line Cinema president and COO. He will lead its reorganisation to become a stand-alone production entity as part of Warner Bros. Entertainment.

New Line will continue to maintain its own development, creative and production teams. In addition, New Line's marketing, publicity, distribution, business and legal affairs and physical production will report to Emmerich, but will closely coordinate with their Warner Bros. counterparts.

Emmerich will report directly to Warner Bros. president and COO Alan Horn. He will also work closely with Warner Bros. Pictures Group (WBPG) president Jeff Robinov as New Line will utilise WBPG's existing infrastructure to reduce costs and take advantage of Warner Bros.' industry-leading scale.

Warner Bros. chairman and CEO Barry Meyer says, "There isn't a better person than Toby to help us keep New Line vibrant, relevant and a key asset for Warner Bros. We are thrilled that he and New Line are now part of our family."

Horn says, "Toby has played a major part in New Line's success over the last decade and helped define the company's taste and style in movies. Quite simply, he's a great film executive. He's highly respected, and he has solid relationships across the industry. Toby and New Line are both great additions to our Studio."

Emmerich says, "I'm very excited to lead the next chapter in New Line's history and am looking forward to the new challenges that lie ahead. This change is bittersweet, as so much of the company I've worked at for the past 16 years is being reconceived, but I'm committed to maintaining New Line's corporate DNA as a creative, aggressive entity.

"I plan to continue New Line's long and productive history as a company that can create hits in new niches--whether it's expanding the horror genre with films like The Texas Chainsaw Massacre and Freddy vs. Jason, or turning an R-rated comedy like Wedding Crashers into a blockbuster. I want to thank Bob (Shaye) and Michael (Lynne) for the opportunities and support they generously provided through the years, and I'd also like to thank Barry, Alan and Jeff for their collaboration and already making me feel welcome."

New Line's upcoming films include Harold and Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay (being released on 25 April), Sex and the City (30 May ), Journey to the Center of the Earth 3D (11 July ) and Four Christmases (26 November).

New Line is widely credited with creating the genre of the R-rated comedy, based on the success of Wedding Crashers in 2005. The company is also one of the few studios that still works in the horror genre and is widely known for the iconic Nightmare on Elm Street franchise. It was recently announced that Michael Bay will produce a re-imagining of this classic. Under Emmerich's leadership, New Line released Freddy vs. Jason, has begun production on Final Destination 4 in digital 3D and has reunited The Texas Chainsaw Massacre team to recreate the original Friday the 13th.

Emmerich most recently served as president of production for New Line Cinema. He was named to that post in January 2001 and oversaw production during the most successful period in the company's history, which included the release of The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, Wedding Crashers, Monster-in-Law, Elf, and About Schmidt.