Salman, Priyanka among Variety's top 500 leaders
25 July, 2018
Billionaire Ambani brothers Mukesh and Anil and Bollywood superstars Salman Khan and Priyanka Chopra are among the dozen Indians named in Variety magazine's list of 500 most influential business leaders shaping the global $2 trillion entertainment industry.
Other Indians in the list include writer-director Karan Johar, Star India CEO Uday Shankar, Essel Group Chairman Subhash Chandra, Aditya Chopra of Yash Raj Films, Balaji Telefilms' Ekta Kapoor, Zee Entertainment CEO Punit Goenka and Siddharth Kapur of The Film and Television Producers Guild of India Ltd.
"Variety500 is an index of the 500 most influential business leaders shaping the global $2 trillion entertainment industry," Variety said on its website. "Updated annually, the Variety500 reflects the accomplishments of its members over the previous 12 months. They were selected by the Variety editorial board, which conducted extensive research for its selections."
Topping the list is Walt Disney Company Chairman and CEO Robert Iger, who "has a strong track record for taking savvy risks" with big-ticket acquisitions like $4.05 billion for Star Wars owner Lucasfilm in 2012, $4 billion for Marvel in 2009 and $7.4 for Pixar Animation in 2006 paying off handsomely.
Wanda Media Group Chairman Jainlin Wang, actor producer Bradley Cooper, Sony Corp Chairman Kaz Hirai, writer J K Rowling, Netflix Chief Content Officer Ted Sarandos, pop star Beyonce, writer and director Patty Jenkins, Megal Ellison of Annapurna Pictures and Youtube CEO Susann Wojcicki also feature in the list. Salman and Priyanka will share the screen in the upcoming film, 'Bharat'.