Skydance Reworks CBS and TNT Sports Leadership Teams

WHO:

Deadline - David Berson, a CBS Sports veteran, is chairman of Skydance’s Global Sports Group and set the sports leadership team.

Deadline - Jeff Gerttula and Craig Berry were named to key roles; Berry is also spelled “Craig Barry” in the article headline.

Front Office Sports - Executives leaving the company include Nate Smeltz, who led TNT Sports communications and talent; CBS production EVP Harold Bryant; TNT Sports CFO Sophia Constantinides; TNT Sports Ventures president Patrick Crumb; TNT Sports HR SVP Donald Knight; and TNT SVP of strategic partnerships Raphael Poplock.

Front Office Sports - Craig Berry, a TNT Sports production executive, will be EVP and chief content officer. Jeff Gerttula, a longtime CBS Sports digital executive, will be EVP and managing director overseeing digital, international, strategy, and business development for sports.

Front Office Sports - Other named sports leaders are Patty Power (EVP, operations and engineering), Chris Carter (EVP, CFO), Kelly Dunne (EVP and president of marketing), Jen Sabatelle (EVP, communications), Bryn Berglund (SVP, HR), Doug Bernstein (SVP, insights and audience strategy), Dan Weinberg (EVP, programming), Kevin Gildewell (SVP, legal), and Deanna O’Toole (SVP, business affairs).

The Hollywood Reporter - The TV and streaming leadership announcement thanked departing leaders Dan Barnes, Michael Bishara, Jamie Cooke, Domenic DiMeglio, Marco Nobili, Pank Patel, and Juan Sola.

The Hollywood Reporter - The message identifies Jay Askanasi (Advertising), Ray Hopkins (Distribution), and David Decker (Content Sales) as previously announced leaders.

The Hollywood Reporter - Named leaders include Jeff Cusson (communications, Skydance DTC); Shauna Spenley (CMO, Global DTC and International TV); Trey Turner (COO, International); Josh Walker (COO, DTC, and CFO, DTC); and Liz Wright (CFO, Skydance TV Segment).

The Hollywood Reporter - International regional leaders named are Andrew Georgiou (interim president and MD, Europe & Africa), James Gibbons (president and MD, APAC & MENA), Kasia Kieli (president and MD, Poland), and Fernando Medin (president and MD, LATAM/US Hispanic).

WHAT:

Front Office Sports - Skydance Sports initiated an executive shakeup following its acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery; a memo from Berson outlined departures and promotions.

Front Office Sports - Berson thanked departing executives, writing: “I am grateful for their leadership, partnership and immeasurable contributions over the years.”

Front Office Sports - Former TNT Sports CEO Luis Silberwasser had announced his departure to staff.

The Hollywood Reporter - The company outlined new TV and streaming leadership, with some leaders focused on TV, others on direct-to-consumer (DTC), and some holding responsibilities across both.

The Hollywood Reporter - A search will be conducted for a dedicated Head of Pluto/AVOD. Olivier Jollet, Will Gurman, and Kevin Kroll will report to that role; on an interim basis, they will report to Josh Walker and the message’s author.

The Hollywood Reporter - Leah Hooper, regional streaming lead for Europe, is expected back in January after maternity leave; Ronald Goes is moving to Skydance TV Studios under Channing; Efrain Miron is leaving the DTC organization to explore other company opportunities.

WHERE:

The Hollywood Reporter - International regions covered include Europe and Africa; Asia Pacific, Middle East and North Africa; Poland; and Latin America and US Hispanic markets.

The Hollywood Reporter - Andrew Georgiou’s Europe & Africa organization includes Italy, Spain, France, Turkey, and Africa; Qaisar Rafique oversees European distribution and business development and Central and Eastern Europe, excluding Poland.

The Hollywood Reporter - Reemah Sakaan leads the UK and Ireland entertainment business, including Channel 5; Christina Sulebakk leads the Nordics, Benelux, and Germany, Austria, and Switzerland.

The Hollywood Reporter - Kasia Kieli will continue to lead Poland as an integrated media team spanning entertainment, news, sports, digital, and studios.

WHEN:

Deadline - The article reports that Berson set the sports leadership team and appointed executives; it gives no eligible future calendar date.

Front Office Sports - The shakeup was described as occurring “weeks after” the acquisition closed; the memo was circulated “Thursday,” with no eligible future calendar date stated.

The Hollywood Reporter - Andrew Georgiou is expected to take a role outside the company next year and will assist with the transition and replacement search. The message says Leah Hooper is expected back “in January,” without specifying a year.

WHY:

The Hollywood Reporter - The message says TV and DTC have increasing crossover and interconnections, and the company aims to advance both businesses while maximizing strategic and financial opportunities between them.

The Hollywood Reporter - The message says the restructuring is intended to combine local and regional expertise with global scale, and calls for collaboration, transparent and data-led decisions, and prioritizing the overall company’s interests.

The Hollywood Reporter - The company said Pluto/AVOD is a significant business that merits dedicated leadership.

HOW:

Front Office Sports - The personnel changes were detailed in a memo circulated by David Berson; Front Office Sports said it obtained the memo and confirmed the shakeup.

Front Office Sports - A Skydance spokesperson declined to comment. Front Office Sports disclosed that it and Skydance share RedBird Capital as an investor.

The Hollywood Reporter - International regional leaders will oversee distribution, ad sales, business and commercial development across networks and streaming, as well as TV programming in their markets, working with global functional teams and the leaders for advertising, distribution, content sales, and sports.

The Hollywood Reporter - Shauna Spenley’s organization will oversee international streaming and TV marketing teams; local teams will retain dotted-line relationships with country general managers or managing directors. Trey Turner’s team will include Pank Patel’s strategy team, Louis Goldstein, Vanessa Brookman, Lee Hobbs, and Myriam Lopez-Otazu. Josh Walker’s team will include Rodrigo Mazon and most of Michael Bishara’s team.

(UPDATED October 30, 2026 08:07 UTC)

Skydance reshuffled leadership after acquiring Warner Bros. Discovery, with David Berson setting its sports team. TNT executive Craig Berry will lead content, while CBS veteran Jeff Gerttula oversees sports strategy. New television and streaming leaders were also named.