Bill Weinstein Latest Celebrity News & Gossip

Here is some news sure to stir the agency world as Deadline has learned Verve CEO Bill Weinstein has separated from the company.

EXCLUSIVE: Former Verve TV lit agent Matthew Doyle is transitioning to management and joining Kaplan/Perrone Entertainment. Starting this week, he will be working out as a of the company’s Los Angeles office.

EXCLUSIVE: Paradigm has let go of a pair of literary agents, Alysia Thomas and Kelsey Roberts, sources tell Deadline.

As Deadline revealed last night, former Verve CEO Bill Weinstein has joined Paradigm along with former Verve colleague Devon Schiff. Both join as agents in the Literary Content department and will be working out of Paradigm’s Los Angeles office.

EXCLUSIVE: Following his stunning ouster from Verve, the agency he co-founded in 2010, where he’d most recently served as CEO, veteran agent Bill Weinstein looks to have found his next destination, as multiple sources tell Deadline that he’s in talks to join Paradigm.

Just over a week after Bill Weinstein left Verve, the former CEO of the agency he co-founded wants his old job back – and Weinstein’s going to court to get it.

In 2010, Endeavor lit agents BillWeinstein, AdamLevine and BryanBesser left in the wake of the WMA merger to launch a new agency built on a different, client-first approach to representation and a different culture from the corporate-minded big firms.

Katcy Stephan Verve agents Jake Dillman, Matthew Doyle and Devon Schiff are leaving the literary boutique in the wake of Bill Weinstein‘s departure, Variety can confirm. It appears Weinstein has plans to set up shop on his own, as alluded to in a statement from Verve leadership. “We are aware that Bill may be trying to create his own agency and we wish him the best,” the statement reads.

EXCLUSIVE: Days after CEO Bill Weinstein separated ties with Verve, lit agents Devon Schiff, Matthew Doyle and Jake Dillman are also leaving the agency, sources tell Deadline. While not confirmed, sources believe the three agents will be joining Weinstein at a new shop he is planning to open up. No details have been disclosed about the potential new agency. Verve leadership had this to say in a statement:

Cynthia Littleton Business Editor Bill Weinstein has exited Verve talent agency after a little more than a year as CEO and 14 years after he helped launch the literary boutique on the heels of Endeavor’s takeover of the William Morris Agency. The parting was confirmed late Monday by Verve in a statement. “We thank Bill as a co-founder and for his 14 years of service and wish him nothing but success in his future,” read a statement attributed to “Verve leadership.” The agency also confirmed that Weinstein’s role as CEO would not be filled but rather “shared by the founders and managing partner.” Weinstein could not immediately be reached for comment.

EXCLUSIVE: Verve has told the troops it will conduct a strategic series of employee layoffs as the WGA-AMPTP strike continues. The layoffs so far pertain mostly to support staff. Agency leaders and agents will also see reduced salaries and expenses as part of the cost-saving measures that are being taken to ensure Verve maintains its position as an independently owned talent agency.

EXCLUSIVE: Veteran TV lit agent Amy Retzinger is departing Verve where she has been a partner for more than 11 years. She just confirmed her exit in a company email with the subject “New Adventures…”

On the eve of its anniversary, Verve has tapped founding Partner Bill Weinstein as the first CEO in the agency’s thirteen years. The decision was made by the Partnership and announced by his fellow Founding Partners Adam Levine and Bryan Besser in an all-company meeting with a grateful and excited Weinstein thanking each member of the Verve community for their support and belief.

Brent Lang Executive Editor of Film and MediaVerve has promoted Melissa Darman to partner.Darman, who joined Verve in 2014, started her career at ICM before pivoting to the studio system to work in comedy development at ABC Network. She then moved onto Lionsgate before joining Verve, where she has continued to focus on comedy during her time as an agent on the TV literary team.“Working at Verve continues to be rewarding on a daily basis,” Darman said in a statement.

Editor’s Note: Deadline closely covered the seismic impact that disruption, and the pandemic had on every segment of film, TV and stage, and the companies that make and distribute them. This will start a series of occasional features on how they’ve emerged from the darkness of the past two plus years. 

Chris Noriega has been promoted to partner at Verve. The TV lit agent becomes the company's first former assistant to become a partner since the agency was founded in 2010.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterVerve has promoted TV lit agent Chris Noriega to partner.He is now the ninth partner at the agency, alongside founders Bryan Besser, Adam Levine and Bill Weinstein, and, Amy Retzinger, Adam Weinstein, David Boxerbaum, Felicia Prinz and Sean Grumman.“We launched Verve over a decade ago with a goal of creating an environment in which interns become assistants , assistants become agents and agents become partners,” the other partners said in a statement.

Verve, the boutique literary agency, is branching into talent representation. The agency has hired veteran talent agent Sean Grumman to head Verve Talent, a move that comes on the agency’s 10-year anniversary.

Also Read: Activision Donates $2 Million to Call of Duty Endowment Helping Veterans Impacted by COVID-19Grumman’s TV clients include Milo Ventimiglia, Anna Chlumsky, Mark-Paul Gosselaar, Morris Chestnut, Chris Wood, Lecy Goranson, Jeanine Mason, Ryan Kwanten, Ben McKenzie and James D’Arcy.Verve was launched 10 years ago by former WME motion picture literary agents Bill Weinstein, Bryan Besser and Adam Levine.

Verve announced Wednesday that it is promoting agent Felicia Prinz to partner.