Content Creation is a Semi-Glamourous Business
Andy Marken August 1, 2024
0 Comments
They worship everything, and they value nothing. - Sebastian, LaLa Land, Lionsgate, 2016
One of the toughest jobs in the world is to be a boss/CEO of a company.
Worse? Being a CEO in the Americas.
Worse yet? Being a CEO of a tech/entertainment company in the Americas.
How did we arrive at this epiphany?
Logic! because you have to pay some idiot an exorbitant amount of money along with a huge backend payment to take the job.
According to the Booth School of Business, the average salary of a CEO at a Fortune 500 company is about $15M and entertainment CEOs get a lot more.
The job is so tough that when Sheri Redstone (family fortune so it sorta' doesn't count) and the board blew out Bob Bakish, she had to convince three guys to share the blame job - Chris McCarthy, George Cheeks and Brian Robbins. Then she could focus full attention - along with the board - to decide if they're going to keep the old girl together, sell her as a single diamond or cut her up into smaller gemstones.
Safe Landing - A for hire CEO always needs a well-crafted exit package or golden parachute because well, paying boss gigs are tough to come by.
In addition to having some small consolation knowing it took three folks to replace him, Basich was given time to clean out his desk and got his monthly stipend ($258K/mo.) until the end of October.
Oh yeah, he had a soft landing like most CEOs who get fired with a $48.5M ++ severance package.
Hollywood may be a tough business, but it pales in comparison to tech firms. Elon Musk is so broke he asked (demanded) that his $56B compensation package be reaffirmed. Wonder how much he gets paid every time he goes to the bathroom?
It's Tougher - While we have a world economy, it's obvious that being a boss in the US is tougher than anywhere else so you have to pay the guy (most of the time it's a guy) because, ah well because.
Sorry, got sidetracked, but being CEO for an American company really has to be tougher than anywhere else in the world.
After all, they have to get paid so much more than their counterparts in other parts of the world to be convinced to take the thankless job.
According to Bloomberg analysis, US CEOs average $14.3M annually more than double their counterparts north of the border and 10X more than those in India.
There are a lot of different reasons for the discrepancies - many of the world's largest companies are located here, there's a higher cost of living (you know about that, right?) and well stuff.
Of course, their jobs - making their numbers - were made even tougher by all of the strikers (actors, auto workers, etc.) who wanted a living wage, healthcare, holidays (EU folks get a month) and simply drug the strikes out, quibbling over little things.
According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, the median US worker made about $31.43/hr. last year but actors were paid $17.94/hr.
While the negotiating bosses still got paid, folks on the picket lines lived off savings (?), the kindness of others and union health plans.
Most actors aren't stars, most creators aren't Tarantino or Nolan; stunt folks have it a little tougher than Fall Guy's Gosling; production folks only get in front of the camera to clean the lens and most postproduction folks grind away hours on end in dark rooms staring at screens.
Sorry to crush the kids' dreams of heading to Hollywood, getting discovered serving coffee, becoming instantly famous, living in a Beverly Hills mansion and wallowing in money.
That s*** doesn't even happen in the movies!
But ever since the golden era of Hollywood, media industry executives have always been highly paid. And over the past bunch of years, these tormented executives have been through the grinder.
There was the MeToo period, the pandemic, those troublesome worker strikes and the total upheaval of the show/movie food chain. But through it all, top executives at Disney, Warner Bros and others got paid an average of $34.8M last year (more than double their counterparts in other US industries).
Salary Plus - Executives - or their agents - may have to negotiate how much they get paid but there's an entire industry built around executive compensation that helps them ensure they get theirs first.
True, stock awards make up most of their compensation packages and they're granted at the beginning of the year.
So, it probably doesn't count that all of those shelved video projects (regardless of how far along they are) that create tax savings and folks being layed off rather than adjusting their salary, are important management decisions.
After all, the pandemic was behind us and obviously, people were going to flock back to theaters even though they had been cutting back on high ticket prices and expensive popcorn for years.
Not Going - Certain segments of the entertainment industry don't like to admit that the cost (time/money) of a movie makes it less attractive for a lot of people to go to movie houses today especially since they have options.
In fact, according to most research, only eight percent of folks consider themselves frequent movie attendees while 59 percent say they rarely or never see movies in the theater.
And we hate to break the industry, but that just ain't gonna change!
The other change, which has been equally as slow and insidious, has been the petering out of the pay TV gold mine.
Folks have options lots of options.
Past Prime - Prime TV viewing is past its prime as the cost of the payTV bundle continued to grow along with the number of ads networks/services packed into each hour. Consumers have begun switching to economic and quality options.
Actually, FX CEO John Landgraf coined the term Peak TV a few years af
Most recent headlines
11/12/2025
Dalet, a leading provider of cloud-native, end-to-end media workflow solutions, ...
27/11/2025
LONDON Vizrt has added several AI-driven advanced features offering improved speed, intelligence and accuracy in the newest version of its media asset managemen...
27/11/2025
Prime Video has launched AI-powered video season recaps in a beta version for select English-language Prime Original series in the U.S., a move Amazon is callin...
27/11/2025
27 Nov 2025
GSMA brings M360 Eurasia 2026 to Samarkand in partnership with VEON...
27/11/2025
Tahar Rahim and Izuka Hoyle star in the gripping six-part Sky Original from Acad...
27/11/2025
Thursday 27 November 2025
Sky Arts Reveals the Nation's Greatest Basslines - and Queen Reign Supreme
The UK's most iconic basslines have been revealed...
27/11/2025
Back to All News
Stranger Things 5': Prepare for One Last Adventure With O...
27/11/2025
The media industry has a paradox at its core. It's an industry built on light, color and imagination, yet behind the scenes, it's powered by one of the ...
27/11/2025
Rating reflects rating progress across areas including policies, diversity & inclusion, health & safety and Net Zero leadership
Winchester, UK, 27 November 202...
27/11/2025
What are the industry standards for Retail Media? Kathryn explains that certification is based on the IAB Europe Retail Media Measurement Standards and the IAB ...
27/11/2025
World champion boxer and Irish sporting icon Katie Taylor will be in studio this...
27/11/2025
Roblox, one of the world's most popular online gaming platforms for primary ...
27/11/2025
Black Friday is leveling up. Get ready to score one of the biggest deals of the season - 50% off the first three months of a new GeForce NOW Ultimate membership...
26/11/2025
SVG Sit-Down: Prime Video EP Mike Muriano Previews Massive Black Friday Slate Fe...
26/11/2025
A cinematic snow sculpture at the 1995 Sundance Film Festival. Photo by Randall Michelson...
26/11/2025
Book podcasts are booming. On Spotify, you'll find everything from celebrity book clubs to deep dives with bestselling authors. And in markets where audiobo...
26/11/2025
Mumbai, November 24, 2025: In a first-of-its-kind initiative, JioStar, in collab...
26/11/2025
LONDON Factual content producer ITN Productions has launched a new low-latency IP gallery for news bulletins....
26/11/2025
MIAMI TelevisaUnivision said it struck a new multiyear distribution agreement with YouTube TV that includes distribution of TelevisaUnivision's U.S. network...
26/11/2025
OpenDrives, Inc., a leader in software-defined data storage and data services, today announced the launch of the Atlas Corporate Creative Solution. This new Atl...
26/11/2025
Disguise, the industry-leading company powering the world's biggest live performances, is partnering with pioneering LED wall manufacturer DVS to give atten...
26/11/2025
HighField AI, the pioneer in agentic and multimodal automation for broadcast and media production, today announced the expansion of its global channel partner n...
26/11/2025
As high-stakes Premier League fixtures approach and additional premium content launches, with MONO positioning themselves to dominate Thailand's sports stre...
26/11/2025
Hosting a wide variety of events from high-intensity NHL games to complex live music concerts and major entertainment productions, Montreal's 21,000 capacit...
26/11/2025
Vizrt, the leader in live production technology revolutionizing viewer engagement and experience, releases AI-driven advances focusing on speed, intelligence, a...
26/11/2025
ITN Productions, an award-winning factual content producer, today launched a new low-latency IP gallery for news bulletins. Responsible for delivering a leading...
26/11/2025
Ikegami reports ongoing advances throughout 2025 in developing and delivering coordinated television production solutions that maximize quality, versatility and...
26/11/2025
Following the Nov. 21 blackout of NBCUniversal channels on Fubo, the two sides have traded barbs about their inability to reach a new carriage deal....
26/11/2025
LONDON As TV sports rights become increasingly important for both broadcasters and streamers, Ampere Analysis predicts global investment in the genre will surpa...
26/11/2025
LOS ANGELES Vubiquity said it has achieved the Amazon Web Services (AWS) Media & Entertainment Competency as part of the AWS Partner Network (APN). This designa...
26/11/2025
WASHINGTON The Federal Communications Commission's Enforcement Bureau said it has entered into a consent decree with Comcast calling for the cable company t...
26/11/2025
Berklee Named to the Hollywood Reporters Top Music Schools List The publication highlights the college's screen scoring program, industry partnerships, and ...
26/11/2025
Back to All News
Animated Series Love Through a Prism' Casts New Light on ...
26/11/2025
Back to All News
NALIP Unveils Fifth Cohort of Director Incubator
Social Impact
26 November 2025
United States
Link copied to clipboard
The National Assoc...
26/11/2025
YouView Achieves Greenly Gold Certification for SustainabilityNov 26, 2025
YouView is proud to announce a Gold Certification award from Greenly for our perform...
26/11/2025
Back to All News
Netflix Deepens Partnership with Taiwan's 62nd Golden Hors...
25/11/2025
Tracy Bonareri Onchoke, an investigative journalist from Kenya is the winner of the Thomson Foundation's Young Journalist Award 2025.
The 26-year-old-sele...
25/11/2025
SVG All-Stars: Blayke Scheer, Senior Director, Creative Content, YES NetworkThe Indiana alum has turned storytelling into an artform for more than two decadesBy...
25/11/2025
Op-Ed: With FCC's C-Band Auction on the Horizon, Broadcasters Need Proven, C...
25/11/2025
Analysis: Is Baller League really the future of sport? By Callum McCarthy, Editor-at-Large
Tuesday, November 25, 2025 - 10:10
Print This Story
With KSI on...
25/11/2025
Platinum Whitepaper: The Growth of Broadcast in the World of Major Large Scale E...
25/11/2025
SVG Summit 2025 Preview: SVG Women's Sports WorkshopBy Samantha Gabay
Tuesday, November 25, 2025 - 10:27 am
Print This Story | Subscribe
Story Highlig...
25/11/2025
SVG New Sponsor Spotlight: CacheFly's Matt Levine on the Evolving Role of th...
25/11/2025
Peacock's EA SPORTS Madden NFL Cast Levels Up on Thanksgiving With SkyCam as...
25/11/2025
Mathias Broe attends the 2025 Sundance Film Festival premiere of Sauna at Library Center Theatre. (Photo by Michael Hurcomb/Shutterstock for Sundance Film Fes...
25/11/2025
The best playlists, podcasts, and audiobooks bring a little extra magic to your daily routine. With new features and offerings, Spotify Premium delivers even mo...
25/11/2025
Comprehensive new research confirms what we already knew: Australian music fans love the quality, quantity, and access they have to new and local music on strea...
25/11/2025
Applicable Products
Objectives The purpose of this application note is to give a brief background on 5G (NR) wireless communication an explain the reason a SN...
25/11/2025
Nielsen will now measure both Lionsgate's FAST channel MovieSphere and Movie...
Content Creation is a Semi-Glamourous Business 
