Bill Weinstein Joins Paradigm Talent Agency Following Verve Exit
After leaving Verve last month, Bill Weinstein and Devon Schiff are joining Paradigm in the literary content department, the agency has announced.
“In this business, whether collaborating or going head-to-head, there is no denying the creativity, intelligence and passion that Bill and Devon bring to their work. This relentless advocacy on behalf of clients is a great fit with the artist-led approach that remains the core value of Paradigm,” said Paradigm Talent Agency managing partner Andrew Ruf.
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The hirings come after nearly a month of rumors and jockeying for Weinstein, who in February was ousted as the CEO of Verve, the agency he co-founded with Bryan Besser and Adam Levine. Shortly after he ouster, it was reported that Weinstein would be starting his own operation, taking three Verve agents — Schiff, Matthew Doyle and Jake Dillman — with him.
Weinstein later filed a lawsuit in Los Angeles Superior Court that claimed that Besser and Levine terminated him following his attempts to resolve a deadlock on personnel and administrative matters (board of director composition and officer compensation). The suit said he was fired for unspecified “cause,” which allowed Verve to purchase his equity interest at a substantial discount. The suit also accused Levine and Besser of leaking news of Weinstein’s termination less than 20 minutes after he was notified.
Two weeks later, Weinstein reached a unspecified settlement with his Verve co-founders.
While it was never announced, it was rumored Weinstein would be setting up a new company called Novo with the other departing Verve agents but, sources say, that the new venture could not find financial backing.
With today’s announcement, Weinstein and Schiff will be entering Paradigm as agents and not in any leadership position. It is unclear where Doyle and Dillman have or will land. Also unclear is what talent will be joining Weinstein and Schiff at Paradigm.
Weinstein and Schiff are the latest hires for Paradigm, which has added several agents in the past couple of months, including Kyle Jensen and Chris Till, previously at Verve; Todd Eisner, previously at A3 Artists Agency; Brett Hansen, Jamie Kaye-Phillips, and Neil A. Cohen, previously at UTA; and Varun Monga, previously at Kaplan Stahler Agency.
Schiff, who was a partner and head of packaging and crossover at Verve, said, “I am thrilled to join the Paradigm team and their artist-first approach, which aligns with my mission to continue to advocate for clients with passion and intention.”
“I have always respected Paradigm as a company and Sam Gores as an entrepreneur. I am grateful that Andrew Ruf and the leadership have welcomed me to join the dynamic team they have built,” said Weinstein, who started his career at Endeavor and later was an agent at WME. “I look forward to expanding our collective network and delivering results for our clients.”
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