Longtime Warner Bros. executive Courtney D. Armstrong has been named president of business affairs and administration for Paramount Pictures.
Armstrong will report to Paramount Chief Operating Officer Andrew Gumpert, who is starting his new position on Oct. 29.
“Anyone who knows or works with Courtney can attest that his exemplary business and legal mind, as well as his standout leadership qualities, put him at the very top of his field,” Gumpert said in a statement announcing Armstrong’s hiring. “He will be a tremendous addition to Paramount, and we could not be more fortunate to have him on our team.”
In a note to staff, Gumpert also announced that Stephen Plum, senior EVP of business & legal affairs, and Jay Galston, EVP of strategic planning & business development, will be leaving the company.
“Stephen and Jay have been critical strategic executives in both steering the company to profitability and building out our film slate, and their work on behalf of Paramount has been immensely impactful,” Gumpert wrote. “They have both been valued colleagues and leaders during their time here, and we thank them for their years of service and many positive contributions to the company.”
News of the shuffle in the business affairs division comes during a period of widespread re-organization at the studio, after Brian Robbins was named Paramount’s president and CEO of last month, replacing Jim Gianopulos.
In the new role at Paramount, Armstrong will oversee business and legal affairs for all of the studio’s live action and animation production divisions. He will also lead the studio’s business development team, overseeing the analysis and evaluation of all new business opportunities for Paramount and working on the company’s strategic planning activities.
Armstrong joins the studio after nearly 20 years at Warner Bros. Pictures (he was an executive at the studio since 2003), where he most recently served as executive V.P. of worldwide business affairs. During his tenure, Armstrong oversaw a number of major projects including “Wonder Woman,” “Dunkirk,” “The Dark Knight” trilogy, “Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindewald” and “Justice League.”
The Northwestern University grad began his career as a litigation associate on the entertainment litigation team at Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walter, LLP, moving to Walt Disney Pictures as an attorney in the business and legal affairs division of the motion picture group before his time at WB.