EXCLUSIVE: We understand that Ramsey Naito, President of Paramount Animation and Nickelodeon Animation, will remain in her role as head of Paramount Animation following the completion of Skydance‘s acquisition of Paramount Global tomorrow, sources tell Deadline.
Meanwhile, Skydance Animation won’t be merged with Paramount Animation, we hear. Rather, in the short term, Skydance Animation will remain separate with former Pixar Studios Chief Creative Officer John Lasseter continuing as Animation Head and Holly Edwards as President of Animation. Skydance Animation’s priority remains its Netflix output deal.
Paramount has some untangling to do post-merger since departing Paramount Global co-CEO Brian Robbins oversaw both Paramount Pictures and Nickelodeon as President and CEO of Paramount and Nickelodeon. As President of Paramount Animation and Nickelodeon Animation, his lieutenant Naito similarly spearheaded animation across both features for Paramount and TV series for Nickelodeon, the latter though Nickelodeon Animation Studio.
In the post-merger corporate structure unveiled on Monday, the areas are split, with features going to Dana Goldberg and Josh Greenstein, Co-Chairs of Paramount Pictures, and Nickelodeon to George Cheeks, Chair of TV Media, with Nickelodeon and Nickelodeon TV Studios listed under his purview. The latter is a moniker that has not been used in recent memory; it likely refers to the existing Nickelodeon Animation Studio.
In light of the separation, Naito will no longer oversee television animation for Nick, focusing on animated features for Paramount, sources said.
It is unclear yet who will succeed her running Nickelodeon TV Studios/Nickelodeon Animation Studio, home of Nickelodeon’s flagship SpongeBob franchise as well as The Fairly OddParents, Rugrats, Avatar: The Last Airbender, The Laud House and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.
Naito gained oversight of Paramount Animation in September 2021 in the wake of Robbins being named Paramount Pictures President and CEO.
She was tasked upon being promoted with developing Nickelodeon properties into animated pictures. During her run at Paramount Animation, the studio released the Point Grey Pictures’ animated pic Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem which grossed closed to $182M worldwide in the summer of 2023 and yielded $1 billion-plus in global retail sales for that calendar year alone. Other animated titles released during her run include Paw Patrol: The Movie ($144.3M worldwide), Transformers One ($129.4M worldwide) and Smurfs (currently $90M worldwide). Upcoming is The Spongebob Movie: The Search for SquarePants (Dec. 19), Paw Patrol: The Dino Movie (July 24, 2026), The Angry Birds Movie 3 (Jan. 29, 2027), as well as still to be dated Legend of Aang: The Last Airbender and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem 2.
Other projects under Naito’s purview were Star Trek: Prodigy from Nickelodeon Animation, as well as a Monster High animated series.
While at Nickelodeon Animation, Naito launched the network’s largest animation slate in its 40+ year history with over 70 projects at the Nickelodeon Animation Studio and deals with top talent and creators.
Naito was promoted from EVP of Animation Production and Development for the Nickelodeon Group to President of Nickelodeon Animation in 2020. During 2021, she oversaw the launches of global television and film franchises such as PAW Patrol: The Movie; the expansion of the SpongeBob SquarePants universe with The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge on the Run and two original spinoffs, Kamp Koral: SpongeBob’s Under Years and The Patrick Star Show; Baby Shark; Blue’s Clues & You!; Santiago of the Seas; The Loud House Movie; and Rugrats.
