Producer, studio veteran and Rideback founder Dan Lin has been named chairman of Netflix Film to replace the outgoing Scott Stuber, effective April 1.
Lin will report to Netflix Chief Content Officer Bela Bajaria and worked with the streamer on The Two Popes, and the new live-action series Avatar: The Last Airbender.
The appointment came sooner than many in Hollywood expected after it was announced in January that Stuber was to depart after seven years.
It is understood Lin’s name was considered early on in the process to replace Stuber, alongside former Universal chief Stacey Snider, and Disney’s Sean Bailey. When Disney announced earlier this week that Bailey was departing the studio after 15 years, the word in Hollywood was that he was no longer a candidate.
Lin has broad tentpole experience and has been courted by Hollywood studios. It is understood he had been in the mix two years ago for the DC Studios job within the Warner Bros Discovery fold.
Rideback produced Aladdin and Haunted Mansion with Disney, among others, and his producer credits include It and the Lego and Sherlock Holmes franchises. During his tenure as SVP of production at Warner Bros. Pictures from 1999 to 2007 he oversaw The Departed, among many others.
The executive takes the film reins at a critical juncture in Netflix’s features strategy. After building a feature conveyor belt, Stuber advocated internally for a slate comprised of fewer and higher quality titles. He was a fan of theatrical releases, which co-CEO Ted Sarandos has made clear on several occasions he does not see as a lynchpin of Netflix’s approach to film going forwards.
Stuber assembled a juggernaut features roster at Netflix that included Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery, Roma, Extraction, The Irishman, Maestro, Marriage Story, The Gray Man, and Nyad, among others.
Lin will leave Rideback in the hands of newly promoted co-CEOs Jonathan Eirich and Michael LoFaso. He will remain on the board of his non-profit BIPOC content accelerator Rideback Rise.
Bajaria said besides Lin’s track record as a producer, his work at Rideback caught her attention as he built “a dynamic community for filmmakers, fostering collaborative and creative environments”. She also hailed his “visionary approach has led to the establishment of incubators and residencies, propelling the careers of extraordinary talent, as well as a steady slate of blockbuster films”.
Lin added, “While I’ve been approached many times during my past 15 years at Rideback, I could truly never imagine leaving until Bela reached out with this incredible opportunity.”