Lionsgate-Summit Lays Off 80 Employees

Pink slips hit Lionsgate and Summit on Friday as the company, which is in the process of integrating two staffs following Lionsgate’s purchase of Summit in January, began laying off about 80 employees.

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Most of the layoffs came in the motion picture and home entertainment divisions, where the two companies had the most overlap and staff reductions were expected.

The lay-offs represent 12 percent of the combined company. Lionsgate has had about 500 employees, while Summit has had about 175, for a total of 675. The goal, with additional employees expected to leave through attrition during the coming months, is to bring that number down to around 575.

The company declined to provide any comment on the developments.

Separately, it did announce Friday that Lionsgate COO Steve Beeks has signed a new longterm agreement and is also taking on the additional title of president of the Lionsgate motion picture group.

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“With the growth of our combined operations through the recent Summit acquisition and a combined feature film slate that is now capable of generating a billion dollars a year at the North American theatrical box office alone, Steve’s ongoing focus on financial discipline, cost control and overhead management is more critical than ever,” Lionsgate CEO Jon Feltheimer said in a statement. Besides Feltheimer, Beeks will also report to Lionsgate motion picture group co-chairs Rob Friedman and Patrick Wachsberger in his new president role for that division.