Amazon hires SPT chairman Hopkins

Amazon has appointed former Hulu CEO and chairman of Sony Pictures Television (SPT) Mike Hopkins as its new video entertainment chief.

Mike Hopkins

Hopkins will step down from his current role as chairman at SPT later this month to join Amazon and return to the streaming sector.

In his new role, Hopkins will oversee the company’s video entertainment business, including Prime Video and Amazon Studios, and will report directly to Amazon CEO and chairman Jeff Bezos.

Current Amazon Studios head Jen Salke will report to Hopkins. Senior VP of business development and digital entertainment Jeff Blackburn, to whom Salke previously reported, is on a year-long sabbatical. Worldwide Amazon Video VP Greg Hart will also report to Hopkins.

The departing chairman is not expected to be replaced at SPT for the time being, with president of US production Jeff Frost and president of worldwide distribution Keith LeGoy both taking on additional responsibilities.

Frost will now lead subsidiaries First Run Television, Embassy Row and the gameshow development team, while LeGoy will oversee Funimation and Sony’s network operations, programming and strategy group. They will now report to Sony Pictures Entertainment chairman and CEO Tony Vinciquerra.

Keith LeGoy

Hopkins joined SPT in 2017 after four years as CEO of Hulu. During his tenure at SPT, he focused on restructuring the studio’s TV operations as opposed to pursuing direct-to-consumer streaming services.

During his time at Hulu, the company doubled its revenue and tripled its market valuation, as well as becoming the first streaming service to bag a Best Series Emmy for The Handmaid’s Tale. Prior to that, Hopkins was president of distribution for Fox Networks.

Vinciquerra announced Hopkins’ departure in a memo to staff on Monday, writing: “I want to thank Mike for his outstanding leadership since arriving at the studio in late 2017. From day one he was charged with rethinking the way we run our television businesses. Under his watch, SPT has been transformed into a stronger and more nimble organisation, able to pivot and change course quickly in today’s rapidly evolving entertainment landscape.”

Hopkins’ move to Amazon, effective on February 24, could reflect the streamer’s intention to expand its Prime Video channels, as building out channels was one of Hulu’s significant achievements while Hopkins was at the helm.