James N. Gianopulos is the former Chairman and CEO of Paramount Pictures, and former Chairman and CEO of Twentieth Century Fox (now 20th Century Studios).
Mr. Gianopulos was one of the longest-tenured studio chairmen in the film industry having served in roles of Chairman and CEO for more than twenty years, beginning in 2000. His work has included overseeing all feature film production, marketing, and global distribution of film and television content in all media as well as guiding studios to the forefront of the digital revolution.
During his tenure as Chairman and CEO of Twentieth Century Fox—one of the world’s largest producers and distributors of motion pictures, with annual revenues exceeding $8 billion and operations in more than 100 countries—the studio experienced its most profitable years. In 2014, it broke the all-time industry global box-office record, earning over $5.5 billion, while achieving its highest-ever domestic box office total of $1.8 billion, making it the top-performing studio in the U.S. that year.
During this period, Mr. Gianopulos oversaw an impressive slate of successful films, including X-Men: Days of Future Past, Kingsman: The Secret Service, Life of Pi, Rise of the Planet of the Apes, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, The Fault in Our Stars, The Grand Budapest Hotel, Gone Girl, the Night at The Museum series, the Taken series, The Simpsons Movie, Borat, The Day After Tomorrow, Walk the Line, the Star Wars Trilogy: Special Edition, Minority Report, and Moulin Rouge. He also championed two of the most ambitious and successful films in history: Avatar, the highest-grossing film of all time, and Titanic, one of the highest-grossing films in cinematic history.
Under his leadership Twentieth Century Fox’s animation division, Blue Sky Studios, produced many successful films including Ice Age and the Rio series. Fox Searchlight Pictures, the studio’s specialized division, produced and distributed commercial and critical successes, such as the Oscar-winning films Birdman, 12 Years a Slave, and Slumdog Millionaire, as well as The Descendants, Black Swan, Juno, and many others.
Prior to his role as Chairman and CEO of Twentieth Century Fox, Mr. Gianopulos served as President of Twentieth Century Fox International from 1994-2000. Among the many notable successes during Mr. Gianopulos’ tenure at Fox International are the Oscar winners Titanic and Braveheart. At one point Fox International had four of the five top grossing pictures of all-time internationally: Titanic, Star Wars: Special Edition, Independence Day, and Star Wars: Episode 1 – The Phantom Menace.
Before joining Twentieth Century Fox, Mr. Gianopulos held senior management positions at Paramount and Columbia Pictures following his career as an attorney specializing in entertainment.
Mr. Gianopulos is a member of the Board of the USC School of Cinematic Arts and a Trustee of The National WWII Museum. He is involved in a number of civic and philanthropic activities including serving on the Board of the XPRIZE Foundation. In 2013, the Simon Wiesenthal Center bestowed him their highest honor, The Humanitarian Award.
Mr. Gianopulos attended the Master’s program at the New York University School of Law, the Fordham School of Law (Juris Doctor, 1976) and Boston University (BA, 1973).
He resides in Los Angeles with his wife Ann and their three daughters.