Oct 3, 2018

Brian Robbins, director of "Norbit," named new president of Nickelodeon

Viacom has announced that Brian Robbins, director and executive producer of the eight-time Razzie Award-nominated Eddie Murphy comedy "Norbit," has been named the new president of Nickelodeon. Robbins will report directly to Viacom President and CEO Bob Bakish.

Robbins succeeds longtime Nick president Saima Zarghami, who retired in June.

In addition to "Norbit," Robbins has had a long and varied career in Hollywood as an actor, director, producer, and film executive. He directed films such as "Shaggy Dog" and "Good Burger" and developed and executive produced shows such as "Kenan and Kel," "All That," "Smallville," "One Tree Hill," and "Sonny with a Chance. [In 2012, Robbins co-founded and served as CEO of Awesomeness, a multi-platform media company for tweens. The company was acquired by DreamWorks Animation the following year for $33 million and again this year by Viacom. Robbins left the company last year for Paramount Players, a division of Viacom-owned Paramount Pictures, where he worked closely with Nickelodeon and other Viacom brands to identify talent and properties to develop as co-branded feature films.

In his new role at Nickelodeon, Robbins will continue to be heavily involved in the development, production, and marketing of all Nickelodeon co-branded films with Paramount Players, including "Dora the Explorer," "Rugrats" and other current projects.

Based in Los Angeles, Robbins will manage both the creative and business side of Nickelodeon and work to grow the content pipeline through a "mix of new and legacy franchises." This issue affects all legacy media companies as the viewing habits of younger viewers are shifting from cable to Internet platforms like Netflix and Google's Youtube.

Robbins' credentials as founder of Awesomeness and his longstanding commitment to Youtube as a content and distribution platform suggest that he will advocate for new ways to spread Nickelodeon content across digital platforms . Indeed, Robbins said in a statement that he "can't wait to disrupt the disruptors" in his new job at Nickelodeon.

"Brian is a creative powerhouse who has spent his career at the forefront of the industry, anticipating and driving change in television, film, and digital media. His unparalleled background in kids entertainment and his first-hand knowledge of Nickelodeon led me to ask Brian to drive innovation and change to ensure Nickelodeon continues to be a dominant force among young audiences."

Robbins himself said, "Nickelodeon is one of the most vibrant and groundbreaking brands in the entertainment industry, with iconic properties, a deep culture of creativity and invention, and an incredibly talented team of kids' entertainment experts We are proud to be a part of it. I am excited to return to Nickelodeon and leverage its many strengths, including its extensive library and rapidly growing studio production business, to bring must-see content to kids on every platform around the world. At a time of great media upheaval, I can't wait to disrupt the disruptor."