Veteran television executive Steve Mosko has been tapped to lead Village Roadshow Entertainment Group.
The newly minted chief executive officer will replace Greg Basser, who is leaving Village Roadshow after three decades. In a release announcing Mosko’s hire, the company said Basser is stepping down to pursue other opportunities. Bruce Berman, Village Roadshow Pictures Entertainment chairman and CEO, will remain in his position overseeing the company’s film efforts. He will report to Mosko.
Mosko is best known for his 16-year stint as the chairman of Sony Pictures Television. His appointment is something of a surprise. He had been working with Jeff Robinov, the former head of Warner Bros. film studio, to revive Studio 8, Robinov’s floundering entertainment company. Mosko had been expected to oversee Studio 8’s television efforts. Studio 8’s future is unclear. It has only managed to release a handful of films, such as the box office disappointments “Alpha” and “White Boy Rick,” and is expected to end its distribution deal with Sony Pictures this year.
Village Roadshow’s credits include The Matrix trilogy, the Sherlock Holmes series, “American Sniper,” “Mad Max: Fury Road,” and “Ready Player One.” In 2017, Vine Alternative Investments and Falcon Investment Advisor acquired a controlling stake in Village Roadshow. At the time, the company said it planned to use its new backing to expand its slate of films and move into television and other forms of content.
Mosko should be helpful as the company pushes deeper into the television space. At Sony, he helped develop and produce such shows as “Breaking Bad,” “Damages,” “The Shield,” and “The Crown,” a string of hits that bolstered his reputation for finding commercially viable and artistically compelling work.
“It’s a great time to be in the content creation space, and Village Roadshow is the place to be,” Mosko said in a statement.