In a recent article, Deadline reported that Crunchyroll COO Brady McCollum would depart the company after fifteen years. Chief Marketing Officer Gita Rebbapragada will replace him by the end of the month.
McCollum’s departure from Crunchyroll is the end of an era. He’s been there since its beginning and helped to make Sony’s purchase of the company as smooth as possible. Alongside the news, more information about the company’s further restructuring were revealed.
COO Brady McCollum to Depart Crunchyroll by Month’s End
After McCollum leaves the company, Chief Marketing Officer Gita Rebbapragada will take his place. Additionally, Barb Bidan will become Chief People Experience Officer. New hire Charles Valentine will lead the Information Technology and Security teams as SVP and report to Bidan.
Lastly, Crunchyroll’s SVP of Global Commerce, Mitchel Berger, will take on the company’s manga publishing business in EMEA. He will continue to lead Theatrical, Content Distribution, Consumer Products, and Home Entertainment/Collectibles. Terry Li has been promoted to EVP, Emerging Business and will continue to lead Global Business Development and the ccompany’sGames and eCommerce businesses.
In a statement, McCollum talked more about the decision. “I would be hard-pressed to say this decision isn’t personally bittersweet,” he said. “A key part of that is this immensely talented team, the strength and momentum of the business today, and the major opportunity ahead. However, it is also important for me to build versus grow, and I’m looking to create some new milestones and meaningful moments.”
Crunchyroll President Rahul Purini commented that “Crunchyroll would not be what it is today without Brady’s contributions. He has been an extremely valued member of the team during that time, and I deeply appreciate his partnership and will miss his perspective and insights. I have full confidence in our talented executives and know we can leverage existing synergies on teams to accelerate the transition.”
Rebbapragada will replace McCollum towards the end of September. Only time will tell how much of an impact this has on the future of the anime-streaming giant.
