SANTA MONICA, Calif. – January 13, 2016 – Activision Blizzard, Inc. (Nasdaq: ATVI) today announced that acclaimed producer Stacey Sher has been named co-president of Activision Blizzard Studios, which is devoted to creating television and films based on the company’s library of iconic and globally-recognized intellectual properties, including Activision Publishing’s Call of Duty® and Skylanders®, and Blizzard Entertainment’s Diablo® and StarCraft®. Sher, who has produced more than two dozen major motion pictures, including Quentin Tarantino’s most recent film, The Hateful Eight, as well as nearly a dozen TV series and TV movies will partner with former Disney executive Nick van Dyk to co-lead Hollywood’s newest studio.
“Stacey is a rare talent behind two decades of award-winning television series and films. Her ability to collaborate with the most inspired, talented people in entertainment and her unyielding commitment to creativity make her perfectly suited to Activision Blizzard Studios,” said Bobby Kotick, Chief Executive Officer of Activision Blizzard. “As custodians of some of the world’s most successful entertainment franchises, we are thoughtfully and creatively expanding our franchises through television and films in a way that will honor the commitment our audiences make to our games.”
“Stacey’s immense talent is a great fit for Activision Blizzard Studios, and together we’ll bring Activision Blizzard’s hugely popular intellectual property to both existing fans and new audiences,” said Nick van Dyk, co-president of Activision Blizzard Studios. “Our model is unique: we have a rich library of franchises created over three decades with tens of millions of fans, direct relationships with our audiences and Activision Blizzard’s business capabilities, which enable us to operate with incredible efficiency in content creation, marketing and distribution as compared to the traditional studios. Our focused and disciplined strategy will drive tremendous franchise value for Activision Blizzard as we bring audiences new ways to engage with the intellectual property they love. I couldn’t be more thrilled to partner with Stacey in building this business.”
“As its large and loyal fanbase can attest, Activision Blizzard has created franchises that mean so much to audiences over the course of 35 years. I’m excited about our mandate to create filmed entertainment based on Activision Blizzard games that is as great as the games themselves,” said Stacey Sher, co-president of Activision Blizzard Studios. “I look forward to joining Nick, Bobby, and the insanely talented and forward-thinking team at Activision Blizzard to develop an even greater voice for these franchises by bringing them into the world of television and film.”
Sher is a two-time Academy Award-nominee, most recently for Quentin Tarantino’s Django Unchained, starring Jamie Foxx, Leonardo DiCaprio, Christoph Waltz, Samuel L. Jackson and Kerry Washington. She was previously nominated for Steven Soderbergh’s Erin Brockovich, with Julia Roberts and Albert Finney.
Sher’s film credits also include Academy Award Best Picture nominee Pulp Fiction, the 2005 Independent Spirit Award-winning Garden State, and three films with director Steven Soderbergh: Contagion, Erin Brockovich, and Out of Sight. Additional credits include Oliver Stone’s World Trade Center; Matilda; Along Came Polly; Reality Bites; Get Shorty and its sequel, Be Cool; Gattaca; Man on the Moon; Skeleton Key; Freedom Writers; Burnt; A Walk Among the Tombstones; Freeheld; Wish I Was Here; Living Out Loud; Camp; How High; AMC’s hit television series “Into the Badlands”; and Comedy Central’s “Reno 911,” for which Sher served as an executive producer for all six seasons.
