Christopher Dodd will leave MPAA and be replaced by Charles Rivkin
By Ryan Faughnder
Contact Reporter
Christopher Dodd will step down as chairman of the Motion Picture Assn. of America after six years as the head of the lobbying arm of major Hollywood studios, according to two people familiar with the situation who were not authorized to comment.
The industry group is expected to announce Dodd’s departure Monday, the knowledgeable people said. Charles Rivkin, former assistant secretary of State for economic and business affairs under President Obama, is expected to succeed Dodd.
The decision was mutual, and Dodd was ready to retire, one of the people said. However, some studio executives were unhappy with his performance and had questioned the effectiveness of the MPAA under his leadership. In 2015, Dodd extended his contract through 2018.
A representative of the MPAA was not immediately available for comment.
Dodd, a former Democratic senator from Connecticut and the Senate majority leader, was recruited by the six major studios to lead the organization in 2011 after a 36-year career in the U.S. Congress. At the time of his hiring, the studios hoped he would restore some of the clout the organization enjoyed when it was led by Jack Valenti, who ran the group for nearly four decades.
But the entertainment industry has changed dramatically since then. The priorities of the major studios have become increasingly disparate because their respective corporate owners don’t see eye to eye on key issues.
Those differing opinions include how to shorten the time-honored gap between a movie’s theatrical release and its availability on video on demand, a debate that clouded the industry’s recent CinemaCon conference in Las Vegas. Dodd was conspicuously absent from the March event, where he has consistently served as the industry’s cheerleader. The MPAA said he had a prior family commitment.
Dodd, who is turning 73 in May, also has faced growing competition from Silicon Valley during his tenure. The trade association took a major black eye from Google and other tech giants in 2012 because of a massive campaign against the controversial Stop Online Piracy Act, known as SOPA.
The MPAA faced another crisis over its handling of the 2014 cyberattack on Sony Pictures that crippled the studio and exposed a trove of sensitive documents, including emails from film studio chief Amy Pascal, who later stepped down. Dodd had tried to craft a letter of solidarity for Sony, but many executives balked. Sony Pictures Entertainment CEO Michael Lynton threatened to exit the organization as a result.
Dodd earned $3.3 million in 2013, according to tax records.
Rivkin is well regarded because of his connections in Washington and his familiarity with the entertainment industry.
He formerly ran Jim Henson Co., creator of the Muppets and “Sesame Street.” Before serving as assistant secretary of State for economic and business affairs, Rivkin was the U.S. ambassador to France and Monaco from 2009 to 2013, also under the Obama administration.
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