Jeff Shell, the chief executive of NBCUniversal, is leaving the company after an investigation into a complaint about an inappropriate workplace relationship, the company’s owner, Comcast, . In the statement, Mr. Shell said that Sunday would be his last day and that he had had “an inappropriate relationship with a woman in the company.” Comcast’s terse statement did not say who would be replacing Mr. Shell at NBCUniversal, which he has led since 2020. But in a note to employees on Sunday, Comcast’s chief executive, Brian Roberts, said that Mr. Shell’s senior team would report to Michael Cavanagh, Comcast’s president, putting Mr. Cavanagh in effective control of NBCUniversal. News of Mr. Shell’s exit from NBCUniversal sent texts whizzing across
New York and
Hollywood, where he commanded Comcast’s sprawling entertainment empire. His departure comes at a pivotal time for Comcast, which is navigating the tricky transition from the traditional TV and cable businesses to a future anchored by streaming video, broadband internet and wireless services. The inquiry into Mr. Shell began in recent weeks after the woman involved in the relationship came forward with a complaint, according to two people familiar with the timeline of the investigation. Mr. Shell continued in his duties while the investigation proceeded, taking previously scheduled meetings with lawmakers in
Washington and working on other matters. Mr. Shell was also scheduled to attend the
White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner in Washington with his wife next Saturday. The investigation, conducted by an outside law firm, was not widely known at Comcast until its conclusion, according to three people familiar with the matter. Mr. Roberts and Mr. Cavanagh called executives who directly work with Mr. Shell over the weekend to tell them Mr. Shell was leaving and to brief them on the leadership transition. In the statement on Sunday, Mr. Shell said, “I’m truly sorry I let my Comcast and NBCUniversal colleagues down, they are the most talented people in the business and the opportunity to work with them the last 19 years has been a privilege.” Mr. Roberts said in his note to employees: “We are disappointed to share this news with you. We built this company on a culture of integrity. Nothing is more important than how we treat each other.” The stunning departure of Mr. Shell, 57, marks an abrupt about-face for him after a nearly two-decade rise at Comcast. Mr. Shell had risen steadily through the ranks at the cable company-turned-media-behemoth, becoming chief executive of NBCUniversal in 2020 after his predecessor, Steve Burke, stepped down. Before becoming the top executive, Mr. Shell had a number of high-profile roles at the media division. In 2013, he was tapped to lead the Universal film studio, which Comcast had recently acquired in a megadeal with G.E. He succeeded Ron Meyer, a longtime Universal executive, who left the company in 2020 after he said he was the victim of an attempt to “extort” him that was related to a past extramarital affair. In Mr. Cavanagh, 57, Mr. Roberts has turned to a close confidant whose stock has risen steadily at Comcast since he joined the company in 2015. Last year, Mr. Cavanagh was appointed president of Comcast — the third person to hold that position in the company’s history — and is widely viewed internally as the most likely internal candidate to succeed Mr. Roberts as chief executive. Even before his sudden departure on Sunday, Mr. Shell’s status as chief executive of NBCUniversal had, at times, been uncertain. Last year, Comcast discussed combining NBCUniversal with Electronic Arts, a deal that could have resulted in a new role for Mr. Shell at Comcast, according to two people familiar with the talks. Ultimately, that deal was never consummated, and Mr. Shell stayed on as the head of the media division. Peacock, NBCUniversal’s streaming service, has had some momentum in recent months, but remains small compared with its peers. Peacock has more than 20 million paid subscribers, significantly fewer than
Netflix (232 million) or Warner Bros. Discovery’s offerings of
HBO Max and Discovery+ (96 million). Some of the major media companies’ streaming businesses are still losing money, and Peacock is no exception. It lost around $2.5 billion last year, and is projected to lose another $3 billion this year. NBCUniversal also owns many cable networks, including Bravo, E!, MSNBC and
USA, which are facing a decline in traditional TV viewership. NBC, its broadcast network, has also lost viewers for its prime-time programming. While not the largest movie studio in Hollywood, Universal Pictures has been quite successful. Highlights from 2022 included “Jurassic World: Dominion” and “Minions: Rise of Gru.” This year started even stronger, with “The Super Mario Bros. Movie” closing in on $900 million in worldwide ticket sales after only three weekends in theaters, making it the company’s highest-grossing animated film in its history. Other highly anticipated films set for release this year include the 10th iteration of the “Fast and Furious” franchise along with Christopher Nolan’s highly anticipated “Oppenheimer,” about the famed nuclear physicist. The studio has also started a flexible distribution strategy that uses a staggered rollout between theaters and its streaming service, Peacock, for bigger films. For smaller titles, like “Marry Me,” starring
Jennifer Lopez, and the horror film “Firestarter,” which both came out last year, the theatrical and streaming debuts are simultaneous. The company’s theme parks have also been a bright spot, with higher attendance and guest spending leading to record profits last year. The company plans to open theme parks in
Las Vegas and Frisco,
Texas, in the next several years. NBCUniversal’s news group, which includes MSNBC,
NBC News and CNBC, is trying to make up for sector-wide declines in traditional viewership with an advertising-supported news streaming service, NBC News Now, and new products for subscribers, including the CNBC Pro service. It has notched some programming wins, including “Inside With Jen Psaki,” a new Sunday show hosted by the former White House press secretary. The company is set to report quarterly earnings this week, and the conference call that follows is likely to be closely scrutinized.